Novatel might be on to something with its MiFi device. It’s basically a rechargeable, portable wireless router that ingests mobile data signals and spits them back out as standard Wi-Fi. The company is calling the technology an “Intelligent Mobile Hotspot,” in case you were longing for some industry jargon.

The idea certainly isn’t new, but this version may very well be the most portable. Initial devices will be good for four hours of active usage or 40 hours of standby time and they’ll be available in the first half of next year, although specific carriers and prices haven’t been mentioned. Also, nobody seems to want to talk about the 5GB data limit imposed by all the major US wireless companies. Seems that if you shared a data connection between enough users, you’d blow through that limit pretty quickly.

Full release after the jump…

Novatel Wireless Drives New Era of Mobile Broadband with Industry First MiFi Intelligent Mobile Hotspot

Ultra Portable Stand-Alone Device Creates a Mobile Wi-Fi Cloud Capable of Connecting Users and Devices

SAN DIEGO – Dec. 9, 2008 - Novatel Wireless Inc., (Nasdaq:NVTL), today unveiled MiFi, an unprecedented line of Intelligent Mobile Hotspots.  Together with a rich applications environment for enterprises and consumers, MiFi drives a new ecosystem of broadband connectivity.  Unlike existing router solutions that require an external broadband modem and serve only to provide connectivity, Novatel’s MiFi line creates a personal cloud of high-speed Internet connectivity that can be easily shared between multiple users and Wi-Fi devices such as laptops, cameras, gaming devices and multimedia players.  Novatel’s MiFi products serve as an intelligent, open platform capable of hosting advanced software applications and flexible enough to address the continued evolution of mobile broadband.

"With the pocket-sized MiFi device, Novatel Wireless has invented a new category of mobile broadband solutions, pushing the envelope in design and performance and ushering in the next era of the mobile broadband experience," said Peter Leparulo, chairman and CEO of Novatel Wireless.  "Our carrier partners will now be able to provide new wireless solutions and bundles for consumer and enterprise users.  This will contribute to the continued growth of the addressable broadband market and create a unique opportunity for carriers to generate additional revenue per user through the deployment of innovative value-add applications and services."

"Mobile Broadband is evolving and with the large number of WiFi enabled electronic devices coming to market, there is a growing consumer need for Internet-ready devices and applications to stay connected while on the go," said Chris Collins, senior analyst with The Yankee Group Research, Inc.

Next Generation in Mobile Broadband Connectivity
MiFi represents the industry’s first Intelligent Mobile Hotspot, a new category of mobile broadband that lets users put their world of content, services and connectivity in their pocket.  Featuring an internal battery providing over forty hours standby and up to four hours of active use on a single charge, the MiFi product line enables users to access high-speed Internet from anywhere there is a cellular connection, including moving vehicles where multiple passengers may need internet access.

Rich Applications Environment
Novatel’s MiFi product line will offer enterprises, SMB and SOHO users a unique solution to secure, control and manage wireless connections.  Certain MiFi configurations support applications such as auto VPN, automatic syncing of email and optional remote management capabilities for the enterprise IT manager. Novatel’s MiFi product line offers a robust platform capable of hosting third party applications that extend the reach and control of the enterprise when dealing with remote mobile assets.

With MiFi, consumers can consolidate and personalize their mobile Internet services through a convenient landing page whether they are at home, in the car or on the go.  For the operator, the MiFi landing page provides a window to the user to offer additional content and services.  MiFi will continue to evolve in order to support applications and services for individuals and families leading a mobile lifestyle.

Unprecedented Ease of Use
Novatel has applied its expertise in human interface engineering to make MiFi the easiest to use broadband device ever.  Users are one-click away from their personalized content and services, with no need for installing host applications or hardware drivers as part of the installation process.

Pricing and Availability
The MiFi line of Intelligent Mobile Hotspots will be commercially available in 1H09 through a variety of Novatel Wireless’ global tier-one operator customers and retail channels.

Apple’s quest for total handheld domination is limited by AT&T and so swirling rumors about a CDMA iPhone has to have some truth to them. It isn’t like Apple to be tied down to one distribution channel like the current iPhone, but that’s the way the cell phone biz works here in the States. According to a 9to5Mac Verizon insider, we could see a CDMA iPhone as early as Macworld 2009. The rumor isn’t new and Verizon initially was going to get the jesusphone, but after some negotiations deteriorated, Apple sought out AT&T. This is still a rumor but if Apple is serious about controlling the handheld market, it has to penetrate different markets and reach a more broad customer base; Verizon is the next, logical step.

According to Twice.com, Chrysler’s parts division will begin selling “a Mopar car cellular/Wi-Fi hot spot, expected to be the first of many Internet offerings from the car companies” starting August 25th.

The hotspot device will be compatible with all 2009 Chrysler vehicles and certain earlier-year models. Customers will be able to order new cars with the device installed or bring compatible cars into Chrysler dealerships to have it retrofitted.

The router will cost $499 and will grab EVDO signals as well as WiMAX signals. The CEO of Autonet Mobile, the company that supplies the device to Chrysler, says that the router can be converted for use on all cellular networks. I’m assuming since Chrysler’s pushing EVDO, this will either be a Sprint or Verizon affair.

Interestingly, the monthly service charge will only be $29. That actually seems reasonable. Again, the device itself costs half a grand and you’ll need to fork over $35 to $50 for installation, followed by a $35 activation fee. The service will be sold by Chrysler as “Uconnect Web” starting at the end of the month.

EVDOinfo.com is reporting that Verizon has halved its per-megabyte overage fees for EVDO data and will set a cap of $250 per month in maximum fees for any three of a customer’s billing cycles. After that, subscribers will be subject to unlimited, non-capped overage charges. So if you go over your 5GB limit by one extra gigabyte, it could cost you $256. However, Verizon’s been nice enough to offer those poor saps who blast through all three of their capped-at-$250 months a 10GB per month plan for $199. Come on. Might as well just sign up for three separate 5GB per month plans as long as you’re getting yanked around. This new policy took effect on June 22nd.

Verizon, AT&T, and Sprint all offer the same laptop data plans for the same prices with the same 5GB limit. All it would take would be for one of these major providers to (once again) offer truly unlimited high-speed data and hordes of customers would switch. Funny how all three are towing the same 5GB-per-month line now, huh? Not one of them even dares to offer, say, 6GB per month or, God forbid, 10GB per month for the same price as the other two. I smell collusion. There, I said it.

Alltel comes closest to bucking the trend with its truly unlimited high-speed data plan at $60 per month, but guess who just got purchased by Verizon?

When Devin skewered the MacBook Air some time ago, he was summarily insulted and burned in virtual effigy; we all laughed at him in the chat room. Far from being useless, however, one valid criticism against the MacBook Air was that it wasn’t portable enough. How could Apple leave out built-in EVDO, no one said? Rather than complain about, one Jordan Bunnell took the Apple by its core or some other stupid metaphor and installed his own damn EVDO module. Hello, world indeed!

The man, armed only with a Veriozn USB727 Aircard, a soldering iron, the heart of a lion and the free time of a loaf-about, managed to get the card working as clear as day.

I have zero engineering ability, so I won’t even pretend to re-tell exactly what he did, but all the pictures are dynamic.

Pretty neat, deep and otherworldly cynicism aside.

via MacNN

The HTC Shift (CDMA version) is a UMPC with a 7-inch tilting screen and a slide-out QWERTY keyboard. The device runs Windows Vista Business and connects to Sprint’s EVDO data network for on-the-go computing. At around $1500, the device is a no-brainer for businesses that need super tiny notebooks for salespeople or field technicians and it even falls into the temptation zone for well-paid casual computer users who want an awesome ultraportable machine.

Features

• 7-inch touchscreen LCD with user-selectable 800×480 or 1024×600 resolution
• Full QWERTY keyboard
• Tablet PC functionality, Origami interface, SnapVUE interface
• EVDO data connection
• Bluetooth (version 2.0) for using wireless communication headsets
• USB 2.0 port
• VGA output for connecting to an external monitor or projector
• 3.5mm stereo audio out jack, 3.5mm microphone jack
• Integrated Web came with VGA (0.3 megapixels) resolution
• Dual speakers
• Processor: 800 MHz Intel A110
• RAM: 1 GB at 400 MHz
• Hard drive: 40 GB
• Weight: 28 ounces (1.75 pounds)
• Dimensions: 8.1 x 5.1 x 0.98 inches (LxWxD)

Pros

From an aesthetic and portability standpoint, the Shift is a pleasure to travel with and elicited more than one “Hey, is that the Shift?” comment from passers-by. It was awesome having something roughly the size of a book in my carry-on bag versus a full-sized laptop. Plus, being able to fire it up and connect to Sprint’s EVDO network quickly was a godsend while waiting for delayed flights and layovers.

The SnapVUE interface is wonderful. It’s basically a large-screen version of a few Windows Mobile features with some nice interface tweaks by HTC thrown in. You get quick access to things like e-mail, weather, contacts, text messaging, connections, and your calendar. Note that the Shift can send and receive text messages but not calls.

The Origami interface is also quite nice for watching videos, listening to music, and surfing the internet. The Shift actually has something for everyone as far as interfaces go. You can use Windows Vista straight up, you can use the Shift as a tablet PC, you can use Origami, or you can poke around in SnapVUE mode. The touchscreen worked pretty well with my fat fingers, too, as I didn’t need to rely on the stylus very much at all. If you need it, though, it’s housed on the backside of the Shift above the battery.

Handwriting recognition actually worked really well. Here’s a video.

Performance was actually quite snappy given the size of the device. I was able to liveblog from it and even do a little photo editing without much trouble at all. You won’t be able to run dozens of programs at once but for surfing the web, reading and writing e-mails, and other relatively simple tasks, the Shift performs just fine. 

Cons

The biggest shortcoming of this small device is that the battery life is also, unfortunately, quite minute. Count on about an hour’s worth of whatever before you need to recharge. The power brick is pretty small, so it’s not hugely inconvenient to lug it around but it’d be nice to see future iterations get 2-3 hours out of the Shift.

Also, the leather case that folds around the Shift isn’t removable — it’s got something to do with the device’s classification and the radio waves it emits. It was pretty annoying at first but after a while, I got used to it. The leather itself is quite nice, it just makes the whole package a little bit bigger.

Finally, the keyboard and tiny trackpad are a bit hard to use — no surprises there. I hesitate to categorize this as a “con” because for its size, it’s about as good as it can be. However, you won’t be typing all that much. Not comfortably, at least. I found myself pecking away with my two index fingers most of the time and poking the screen instead of using the right-side tiny trackpad and left-side mouse buttons.

Conclusion

If you’re a mobility buff, you’ve no doubt heard of the HTC Shift and as far as UMPCs go, the Shift is hard to beat when it comes to price, features, and performance. It probably won’t replace your desktop or big-boy laptop, but it could, depending on what you’re doing. Road warriors, especially, will absolutely love this machine. 

If I had $1500 to burn plus another $60 or so per month for unlimited data access from Sprint, I’d definitely buy this machine just for airport and couch use. If you’ve got the moolah and you like to stay connected, the Shift is a great choice.

Now replace “customers” with “Verizon” and “communicate with others” to “make an ass-load of money.”

Far be it for me to tell you how to spend your hard-earned cash, but $35 per month for Mobile Web access and data usage, plus 40 cents per minute for each call you make is no way to live. That’s just for regular handsets, too. If you’ve got a device that actually uses data in a constructive way, like a BlackBerry or a PDA/Smartphone, it’ll cost you $54.99 per month and then 25 cents per minute for voice calls. Outrageous.

Now I know that Sprint and Verizon aren’t the same thing, but let’s assume for a minute that the two companies use very similar technology (which they do) and I’ll tell you a tale about how when I used to be a Sprint customer (last month) I paid $44.99 for unlimited data and 200 anytime minutes on a Smartphone, plus free evenings (starting at 7PM) and weekends. The voice part was $29.99 and the data part was $14.99. To be fair, I did have to pay for text messaging, which is included in Verizon’s thing, but I still came out at under $50 per month for fast EVDO data + voice.

File this away in your “Meh” folder if you like but Verizon Wireless is offering 50MB of EVDO data for $39.99 a month. That might work for some people, but I’d think it’d be pretty easy to blast through 50MB and, according to MobileBurn.com, going over will cost a cool 99 cents per megabyte. If you’ve got no better uses for $40 and just need to hop online in a few remote locations every month, maybe this would be a good option for you versus VZW’s $59.99 5GB plan.

BroadbandAccess Data Plans [Verizon Wireless] via BGR

Cricket [via BBG via Gearlog]

Good news for HTC Mogul owners on the Sprint network — there’s a new update available that’ll allow your phone to connect to the higher speed EVDO Rev. A network where you could very well enjoy double the data speeds.

The current EVDO Rev. 0 protocol features download speeds of 400- to 700-kbps and upload speeds of 50- to 70-kbps. EVDO Rev. A bumps the download speeds to between 600- and 1400-kbps and the upload speeds to a much, much faster 350- to 500-kbps. The update is available here on HTC’s site.

Sprint phone first to use fast network [AP/Yahoo! News]

Laptop’s Mogul review

The Compass 597 USB dongle is the smallest in Sierra Wireless’ product line. The 597 features a microSD slot and works over an EV-DO Rev. A connection. It also features TRU-Install software that supposedly makes setup easier and is the first in its’ class to include a connector for an external antenna as well as a built-in GPS antenna. It will be available sometime in early Q2.

Product Page

We might be seeing more hubs like this in the near future. As wireless broadband gets less expensive and technologies like WiMAX get competitive, 3G routers will start popping up. They’re relatively cheap and a great way to share a high-speed connection with multiple users in areas where you can’t get regular Internet access.

Dave Zatz likes the CradlePoint MBR1000, going so far as to suggest it might be the best EVDO router ever. We haven’t used it, so we can’t say, but it certainly sounds impressive; he was able to get it unpacked, configured, and running with his gear in less than five minutes.

But I’m not one to gush about tech I haven’t experienced myself, so pop over to Dave’s excellent site and have a look for yourself.

CradlePoint MBR1000: Best EVDO Router Ever? [Zatz not funny]

I’ll be the first to admit that e-books suck. They’re great in theory, but they’ll never catch on. There’s nothing that screams dork more than an e-book. E-books are the future. Apparently there is some miscommunication going on and some are under the impression that I think e-books are not the future. I, like many others, enjoy the real thing. There’s just something comforting about having a paper book to carry around, to bunny ear, scratch notes on, highlight words/phrases and whatever else you may like to do. The refresh rates suck and you just want to pull your hair out while waiting for the next page to load. You don’t know how far along you are in the book. Those are just a couple reasons among a slew of arguments to hate e-books. Although, part of me thinks it’s a waste of resources even if it’s made from recycled paper. Traditional books have their pros and cons, but e-books are just janky and stupid, right? Well, yes, they are, but the Kindle from Amazon is a different beast.

My initial impressions were pretty off. I just wasn’t all that impressed and sort of left it on my desk for half a day, but I always want to floss the latest in technology when traveling so I brought it along for my trip to the Bay Area for turkey day. I figured I’d at least have Internet access while waiting at the airport. Then I started to tinker around with it as I got bored with the browser, which is phenomenal, but we’ll get to that later. The Kindle is a well thought out product. It incorporates the New American Oxford Dictionary and Wikipedia, which is extremely helpful when you have no idea what’s being said in an article from the NYT, Time, CrunchGear or any one of the books available from Amazon. I often find myself not knowing the definition of a particular word and I always tell myself I’ll grab the dictionary and look it up. I also tend to highlight phrases or passages that I’d like to share with others or just keep for myself, but I can’t always find them when I need them. These are just a few examples that I know many of you find yourselves in as well. Kindle takes care of all that. If you’re reading a book/magazine/newspaper and you need to look up the definition of something then do a quick search without ever leaving that page. It’s that simple. The Search function on Kindle is superb as it checks the Web, Wikipedia, New American Oxford Dictionary, Kindle Store and any book/magazine/blog that’s on your Kindle. It’s the most comprehensive search engine I’ve seen and it’s on an e-book of all places! If you need to highlight something then go right ahead. Want to take a few notes in a particular section then do it. Any notes or highlighting you do shows up on the main menu under the “My Clippings” category. Need to know how far you are in the book? If you’re like me then yes you do. At the bottom of the screen is an indicator bar that fills itself in as you go along. Navigating through books is as easy as any paper book. If you need to check out the table of contents or you need to jump to the beginning or go to a specific location then do so by way of the menu. You can add a bookmark, though, the last page you were on is always remembered. Bookmarks show up under “My Clippings” as well. Can it get any easier? I don’t think so.

As far as the hardware goes, it’s fantastic. I’ve adapted to the keyboard and it’s quite easy to use. However, I don’t really enjoy the placement of the navigation buttons. I fidget around quite a bit and I find myself accidentally hitting the next page button a lot. It’s annoying, but I do like that the buttons are so big. The scroll wheel is neat, but it attracts a lot of lint and dust and anything else floating around since it’s sticky, but I’m just being super picky. As I said before, the refresh rate is outstanding. There’s really no lag when jumping from page to page. Text is visible in just about any lighting situation and font size can be adjusted however you like. I just wish it supported SDHC, but that’s only because my largest SD card is 2GB. It’s nice to be able to transfer your files to and from the SD card depending on how much content you already have. Music playback on the Kindle is quite good, though, any music that’s loaded is on shuffle and you can’t even see what you actually loaded so pick your music wisely. It’s under the Experimental category so I won’t harp on it too much. The Kindle automatically goes into sleep mode if it’s left untouched for 10 minutes. It’s a bit awkward at first, but it eventually becomes quite comfortable. I can’t comment on battery life just yet, but I’ll update once I know what the approximate range is for just viewing and when EVDO is activated.

All other material that you subscribe to is easy to view and gives you the option of a traditional look like on your computer or a truncated list of just headlines. It’s very simple and that’s the whole point. You just want to read articles without obnoxious ads distracting you from finding out that the U.N. says Somalia is the worst humanitarian crisis in Africa. Kudos to you, Amazon.

The Web browsing experience is very good so long as the sites you frequent aren’t Java-based. As long as it’s mostly text then you should be fine. You’re on Sprint’s EVDO network so it’s quick and it’s free. I just Facebooked while I was waiting for my flight. The standard site sucked, but the mobile site was a breeze because the screen is so large. The fact that you get free Internet is a huge plus in my opinion and what other e-book has that? Who knows if Amazon will start charging in the future, but for now it’s free and it’s awesome. Books literally take a minute or so to download. That’s the beauty of the Kindle. You never have to sync with your computer to receive your books. Don’t worry about accidentally deleting books off your Kindle because it’s all backed up on a server just for Kindle users.

Here are just a couple of things that I haven’t played around with or tested. I haven’t e-mailed anything to the Kindle because I just didn’t have the time, I don’t know what the e-mail address is because this is Biggs’ Kindle and I don’t know what the “small fee” to Amazon for reformatting entails. The Kindle doesn’t support PDF so there’s no point in trying to make that work. I wonder if and when this will be hacked. As I mentioned before, I’m not sure on the battery life so I’ll have to get back to you, folks, on that one. I also didn’t use Ask Kindle NowNow, but I think Erick had a few comments on that over at TC.

Now that I’ve had a positive experience with an e-book, I find myself asking if this is something I’ll continue to use. No, I won’t. I won’t use just any e-book. After the Kindle everything else on the market pales in comparison. I’m actually going to purchase books since some are as cheap as $3.19. I can’t say enough about the free Internet! Is it worth the $399 price tag? Maybe not, but it could be very soon if the hackers get to it. I dig the Kindle and I hope people give it a chance because it’s a great device and I think it’ll put a fire under some asses in the e-book industry.

Product Page

I have a friend who spent the better part of the last three years of his life driving all over the country teaching people about bearings.

Whether or not I actually completely understand what that means is irrelevant but what amazes me most is that he didn’t have satellite radio or some sort of in-car computer to keep himself entertained.

I might have considered purchasing this, had it been me traveling every road in this here land. It’s a $500 router that hooks up to Sprint’s EVDO network (at $59 per month) to provide your car with its own wireless network that’s “reliable at over 100 mph.”

However, there’s also the possibility of using your EVDO-enabled phone’s Bluetooth connection to provide internet access to a Nokia N-series device or some sort of UMPC affixed to your dashboard. That’d be significantly less expensive (the 770 would, at least) but you wouldn’t be as cool as the guy providing a 300-foot wide wireless network all along I-80.

WAAV AirBox Cellular Routers [waav.com]

To be fair, the fine print on Verizon’s unlimited EVDO service said that e-mail and internet browsing were all-you-can-eat, according to Ars Technica, but had no such allowance for videos, music, or other large files.

But after roughly 13,000 customers found themselves unable to use their data services due to an arbitrary, unknown usage cap enacted by Verizon, New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo fought back by saying that "when consumers are promised an ‘unlimited’ service, they do not expect the promise to be broken by hidden limitations."

After a 9-month investigation, Verizon has agreed to pay out $1 million to customers who had their service terminated, which in turn left them with useless handsets and data cards. It’ll have to pay out $150,000 to the state of New York as well. Verizon has also now removed the term "unlimited" from its BroadbandAccess plan. So for $60 a month, you can now get sorta-unlimited-but-watch-your-step wireless data access.

Verizon to pay $1 million over deceptive "unlimited" EVDO plans [Ars Technica]

Amazing. The BlackBerry 8830, which works on both CDMA and GSM networks, is now available on Verizon Wireless, as per the rumors. It is, after all, a BlackBerry, so you can expect and look forward to push e-mail and Internet access (in the EVDO/GPRS flavors) ’round the world. And is truly is “’round the world” because the 8830 works in more than 160 different countries, including such international hot spots as Yemen and Micronesia*.

The BlackBerry 8830 will set you back $300 with a shiny new two-year, voice-only contract, or $200 with a contract that includes both voice and data. Data plans are expensive: $65 per month with a voice plan, $70 without one. Or, if you’re so inclined, you can sign up for a Pay-As-You-Go plan, which works out to $20 per megabyte of bandwidth consumed. Maybe on Earth 2 that’s acceptable, but not in my world it’s not.

*Or not

Product Page [Verizon Wireless]

Another day, another Apple rumor. This time, “credible sources” are telling AppleInsider that Jobs & Co. are looking to start including integrated WWAN cards into future notebook models. The card will be optional and will cost around $180. Rumor has it that Apple is also trying to squeeze a WWAN adapter into the notebook lid rather than placing it on/near the logic board so that electromagnetic interference is at a minimum.

No word yet on whether the card will support EVDO or HSDPA, but something tells me that if this rumor has any truth to it, chances are Apple went with HSDPA since AT&T uses it and we all know by now that AT&T is getting the iPhone. Makes sense, right? Who knows at this point.

Source: Apple may build 3G wireless into future notebook model [AppleInsider]

Over on Flickr, user tnkgrl got fed-up with the EVDO card her OQO Model 2 came with. So what’s a girlfriend to do when she wants a little HSDPA in her life? Mod the hell out of her computer, that’s what. Tnkgrl went ahead and ripped out that EVDO like a loose hangnail and replaced it with a brand spankin’ new HSDPA card.

Doesn’t look like it took too much work, but for those of you not comfortable around wires or voiding your warranty, you might want to stay away from this gruesome photoset.

Official Flickr Page [via Slashphone]

Having EVDO on a notebook when you’re out and about is certainly a treat. But all good things must come to an end and in this case, it just so happens to be the word “unlimited”. For over a year now, Verizon has been touting its EVDO data plan as “unlimited,” when in reality, if you went over 5GB of downloads a month, your service would be cancelled for fear that you were pirating. Cybernet News dug deep into Verizon’s ToS and found the following:

“Unlimited Data Plans and Features (such as NationalAccess, BroadbandAccess, Push to Talk, and certain VZEmail services) may ONLY be used with wireless devices for the following purposes: (i) Internet browsing; (ii) email; and (iii) intranet access (including access to corporate intranets, email, and individual productivity applications like customer relationship management, sales force, and field service automation). The Unlimited Data Plans and Features MAY NOT be used for any other purpose.”

It just gets better from there on. The terms go on to basically state that if you’re downloading more than 5GB a month, you’re clearly pirating or engaging in “prohibited uses” of Verizon’s data plan. What does this mean for you? If you don’t want to risk having your EVDO service cancelled, you’d better lay off the P2P, Bit Torrent, and streaming media. Otherwise you may find yourself looking for a new data provider.

Verizon Admits that their Unlimited Data Plan is Limited to 5GB Per Month [Cybernet News]

Our hockey-playing, pot-growing neighbors to the north have got a new MVNO in town and the content it’s packing is looking pretty tight. Amp’d Mobile will be leeching off TELUS’ EVDO network to launch in Canada with plenty of content in store. Some of the features Canadian Amp’d customers will receive include streaming TV, 20 Amp’d video channels, Amp’d radio, partnerships with MuchMusic and the NHL for exclusive content, user content, and a hockey puck to the face.

Now take a minute and digest that. Done? Good, because there’s more. Like the US, Amp’d Canada will offer users packages featuring unlimited calls and texting — one of the bigger turn-ons of Amp’d Mobile. Other partnerships include Adult Swim, UFC, Break.com, Fox Sports, MTV Canada, and a bunch of other Canadian-based channels. The initial phone selection hasn’t been revealed, but it’s probably no different than the US lineup of Helio phones. Oh and did we mention $.99 music downloads until September? Rockage, but Amp’d has yet to say if the classic 1980s hit “Don’t Forget Me” by Canadian act Glass Tiger will be available. Our lipstick and eyeliner are praying.

Amp’d Mobile launches in Canada [Slashphone]

Update: Johnathan let us know that Amp’d Canada is selling a custom RAZR V3M with a black and red paint scheme and 256MB microSD card included. It costs $300 CAN with no contract. Thanks!