Verizon readying subsidized HP laptops

"landline killer" home phone is due out in the second half of the year, and VZW's apparently retargeting it a little: we're told it'll be more upscale and boast even more features. And here we thought that We just got a pair of small-but-juicy Verizon rumors from a very reliable tipster: first, we hear that HP and Big Red are working together on subsidized WWAN-enabled laptops for launch in Q2. Exactly what machines will be involved can't be confirmed, but if we had our guess we'd say Big Red's got a cheap Mini 1000 on a two-year contract in the works, since these so-called "netbooks" are all the rage these days. Second, a updated version of the charming-but-questionably-useful Hubinternet radio widget was gettin' all crazy. No word on pricing for any of this stuff, but we'd bet we'll find out more soon.

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LG Versa heading to Verizon

If you're the type of individual who can never decide between the Cobb salad, the lobster bisque, and the sesame prawns and end up ordering all three, take note -- your phone has arrived. The long-rumored LG Versa lets you have your cake and eat it too by starting life as a full touchscreen slate, and when the time comes for some serious emailing, texting, or notetaking, you just snap on the included cover that includes a full QWERTY keyboard. The cover also features its own OLED display -- handy, since the Versa's 480 x 240 main display is concealed while the cover's closed -- while the phone itself rocks EV-DO Rev. A with tethering capability, a 2 megapixel cam with face detection and video recording, microSD expansion, and GPS. It'll be available starting March 1 for $249.99 on contract before a $50 mail-in rebate.

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