DROID Bionic Commercial Leaked. Features Secretive QR Code That Leads To…?

The constant stream of DROID Bionic information and marketing material has hit an all time high as we close in on ~ 1 month until release. Late today a new DROID Bionic commercial leaked onto the web. It’s quality was just barely adequate. But more interesting than the message — because we already know what it’s saying — was the blink-and-you’d-miss-it QR code at the very end of the commercial. Secret information?

We’re going to have to break your heart. According to ongoing discussion in this thread over at Android Central, the super secret QR code simply leads one back to the already flogged “Get More” Bionic teaser page. Yeah, buzz kill. But hey. The Bionic is coming very, very soon and everything you could possibly want to know about it has already been leaked. Kind of makes for a rather ho-hum release, huh?

Still, if you’re feeling a bit bored this fine Monday evening, why not hop past the break and catch that commercial everyone’s been talking about…

Report: iPhone 5 To Feature Dual-Mode Design, Cater To GSM And CDMA Customers.

Rumors have long pegged the iPhone 5 to feature a bevy of next-gen features. The more longed for of course being LTE. But even as evidence mounts for LTE, a new report by TechCrunch throws fresh water on the claim.

Specifically, TechCrunch is claiming an unnamed iOS developer has come forward and shared something very interesting — a dual-mode GSM/CDMA iPhone has been registered several times in their app’s registration logs. Now, it is worth noting that spoofing criteria such as cellular mode (and much more) is quite easy on jailbroken devices. Spoofing both on a single device is downright impossible — at least for now.

Apple is notorious for eschewing the current fad (read: LTE) in return for a much more proven, refined technology. They did it with 3G and they’re likely doing it with 4G. With that said, consolidating their GSM and CDMA efforts into a single device instead of needing two separate handsets is a likely decision given continually shrinking baseband hardware. Not to mention it saves Apple money in the long run.

Do we doubt TechCrunch’s report? No, not really. Of course we won’t really know until later this year (September/October) when Apple announces and releases the iPhone 5. Until then, let the rumors fly!

Sorry, Android Junkies. HTC’s September 1st Event Is All About Windows Phone.

If you’re an Android aficionado, hearing rumors of nothing but Windows Phone announcements at HTC’s September 1st event is likely to cause depression, over-eating, and god knows what else. If you walk the line with Microsoft’s latest and greatest, however, things are on the up and up.

BGR claims to have been tipped off by a reliable source that it is Windows Phone 7 news through and through that HTC will divulge, beginning with the 3.7″ packin’ HTC Eternity looking to call AT&T home. But what’s really got our attention is the monstrous 4.5″ HTC Omega heading to T-Mobile USA. As is standard with news of this nature, pricing and release dates are still MIA.

Rdio Announces New Family Plan Radio Streaming Service.

The current standard in radio streaming plans — $4.99/web and $9.99 web + mobile — is getting old. The only difference between brands is…brand name. Of course, there’s only so many ways you can stream radio from point A to point B. With that said, that changes today with a new announcement via Rdio, highlighting the company’s new 2 and 3-user family plans.

The standard $9.99 individual account for full web and mobile access remains in tact as it was. But now, Rdio enthusiasts can add a second ($17.99/month) or third ($22.99/month) user account to their Rdio subscription. Each user underneath a family plan will be able to make use of their own individual user name, user profile, music collection, listening history, network of followers and playlists.

While the move is a first for the streaming radio scene, it’s somewhat disheartening to see three accounts as the limit. (Why not 4 or 5?) Still, we’ll take what we can get.

Verizon Announces New And Updated LTE Markets For September 15th.

While everyone else stands around and plans to make plans for future LTE rollouts, Verizon is…welll…doing. Today the carrier announced several new LTE markets as well as an updated market scheduled to go live September 15th, 2011.

New Markets

• Illinois: Bloomington/Normal, Champaign/Urbana, Rockford, Springfield, and Quad Cities

• Iowa: Iowa City

• Minnesota: Moorhead

• North Dakota: Fargo

• Ohio: Canton, Lima, and Mansfield

Updated Markets

• Ohio: Cleveland

Verizon Launches Re-branded V CAST “Verizon Video” Service.

V CAST users listen up: Verizon has some new shiny toys for you by way of a new service. Ok, it’s not really “new” as it’s a re-branding. Nonetheless, Verizon announced today their re-branded “Verizon Video” service (formerly V CAST). Besides a new name, the new service also comes with a healthy upgrade including up to 250 full-length TV shows from major networks as well as a massive suite of live sporting events. In total there are now 100+ channels to fill up each and every hour of your day.

All Verizon 4G and many 3G phones will have access to the $10/$3d (monthly/daily) service starting today. **A separate data plan is required.

Rumor: Apple To Release “Absolutely Different” Product(s) This Year.

According to loosely translated (Google) report from Japanese tech site macotakara.jp, Apple will announce/release new Mac hardware this year that is “absolutely different from current products”. No specifics are given, meaning the new hardware in question could be anything from radically redesigned Mac Pro desktop computers to larger 15″ and 17″ MacBook Air-like laptops to even an all new device.

According to 9to5 Mac, macotakara is only marginally accurate in their predictions, citing the most recent “victory” of correctly estimating the iPad 2′s release date. In short: Your guess is as good as anyone’s.