Our peeps over at TUAW (The Ultimate Apple Weblog) are linking to a Wall Street Journal post that seems to affirm Apple CEO Steve Jobs will announce an Apple branded cell phone today.

This phone is supposed to be marketed by Cingular Wireless.

You know Cingular- the outfit that kept moving the release date for their flavor of BlackBerry Pearl, and unlike T-Mobile, kept almost their entire retail and online distribution channels in the dark.

RIM put up with that because RIM tends to defer lots of marketing and distribution efforts to their carrier partners.

But at Apple, it is difficult to imagine Steve Jobs letting the carriers rule.

So I wonder if he'll be capable of baby-sitting Cingular'd distribution for such a product in a tight-ship way that BlackBerry/RIM was unwilling to because of their "carriers-first" corporate culture?

• Availability - Instantly displays the current availability/status of friends, family, and business colleagues to receive a wireless call. Availability states include "Available," "Silent," "Do Not Disturb," and "Unavailable."
• Call Me Alerts - The ability to alert others that a user needs to talk and allows them to call back directly from the PTT button.
• Call Waiting - Allows users to easily accept voice calls and other PTT calls during an existing PTT session.
• Convert to Cellular - Enables BlackBerry Pearl customers to convert an individual or group PTT call instantly to a standard cellular call or instant mobile conference call at the touch of a button.
• Voice Messaging - Easily records and concurrently distributes voice messages to an individual or multiple voicemail boxes without ringing the called parties' telephones. Does not require the caller to remember telephone or PIN numbers.
• Contact List Privacy - Permission-based contact management. Users authorize which contact and group lists they join.

With the AT&T-BellSouth merger having been approved late Friday, it is now an article of faith that the Cingular Wireless name will go away sometime in the next several months.

Why? Cingular is the wireless company originally owned by SBC and BellSouth. But, see, SBC bought AT&T and took the name, and the bulked up AT&T's $82 billion purchase of BellSouth was approved by the FCC late Friday.

The question for Blackberry users is, when are we going to see the AT&T logo burned on formerly Cingular-branded devices?

In other words, what about an AT&T logo on the Pearl, forthcoming 8800, or other future models further back in testing?

I've been pouring through our server logs, and then counting down the ten most-read BBHub posts of the year.

And now, as we roll out the old year, it is time for #1.

Dating back to August 10, the most frequently eyeballed BBHub post of the year is "T-Mobile's BlackBerry 8100 is Pearl.. Cingular's name will be the..."

At that time, with Pearl still a little more than a month in the future, I suggested that Cingular might take another name for its 8100. I thought they might want to alleviate confusion by picking another moniker for their 8100 flavor.

Time proved, of course, that Cingular thought the Pearl name was just fine for Cingy's and BlackBerry's purposes.

"A Pearl by any other name?"

BBHub reader Troy differs with the assumption that the upcoming rise Cingular will implement January 21 for text messaging fees will let Cingular Wireless customers leave their contracts without penalty should they wish to do so.

"Actually, you can't escape your contract because of this change," Troy writes. "It's's in the wording - text messaging is a pay-per-use service. The text message price increase is not affecting the monthly text packages that people have subscribed to."

Troy adds his belief that this texting price increase is identical in nature that the hike Cingular made to its Directory Assistance 411 service- a rise that Troy notes that did not allow subscribers to break their contract>"

Heading recalls savings plans, CDs, and for me, oh, better not go there.

(Blogger leaves PC for cold shower)

(Blogger returning to PC after cold shower)

The Consumerist web site describes a way for Cingular Wireless customers to break their contracts without a termination fee.

The pretext would be text- an increase in the text message rat for all postpaid and Pick-Your_plan customers not currently signed up with an SMS packet. . Effective January 21, you will have 30 days to break your contract.

The text message rate change is effective Jan 21, 2007. You have 30 days from then to break the contract. The change affects all postpaid and Pick-Your-Plan customers not currently subscribed to an SMS package.

Consumerist notes that HowardForums and FatWallet have extensive threads devoted to the subject.

Nice find by Steve at Blackberry Cool.

Writing in his personal blog, Paul Levy, CEO of Boston's Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, describes how he has shed his BlackBerry addiction.

"I write from experience," Levy notes. "I was a 'Crackberry' addict. As I look back and see how often I was rude or inattentive, I am embarrassed. As I look back and see how often I responded in haste to an email in the midst of other activities, I am appalled."

Next, we learn the straw that broke the camel's...maybe not the back.

"But, I have given it up.," Levy writes."The impetus was when Cingular wrote in November to tell me that my bare bones Wireless Mobitex data service was going to be discontinued, but that I could "upgrade" to one with a higher price with more functionality, if I also bought a new Blackberry or Treo. I had until December 31 to make the switch: "All Mobitex devices on your account will be unable to send or receive messages after that date."

"I read that sentence and had quite a different reaction from that hoped for by the Cingular marketing department. Gee, if service will end on December 31, why wait?," Levy adds. "Let's end it sooner. So, I did. I called that 800-number and shut 'er down that very day. Blackberry cold turkey."

And since then, many blessings...

"I have since discovered marvelous things," Levy writes. "The sun rises in the morning and sets at night. Airport lounges are great places to visit with friends or read a book.."

Funny, I always thought airport lounges were great places to have a drink or two if the forecast is for turbulence.

"Red lights are an excellent excuse to stop driving, look around, and see what's happening on the streetscape," Levy adds. "People in meetings pay more attention to you if you pay more attention to them. The email that arrived three hours ago is still relevant -- or better yet, no longer matters!"

• Not taking into account T-Mobile's "exclusive" on the Pearl until December 1, and
• Being clueless with our head up our well, down there.

"I pride myself on accurate info or I won't post it," BG (blurred pictured above) tells BlackBerry Cool. "Did I drop the ball on this one? No. The information I got was off an internal Cingular Pearl presentation which clearly stated the Pearl would start shipping November 21st, I believe it was, that was moved up from November 28th.

"As we all found out it looks like they went back to November 28th," BoyGenius adds. "We as journalist(s) can only report what we feel is credible. If a major carrier has a screwed up launch it's not our problem.

"People can whine about it but at the end of the day, we leaked something that was credible and Cingular dropped the ball - not us," he points out. All we do is bring people the news, and info. They can then make their own decision.

BBHub reader hyku went out and bought a Cingular BlackBerry Pearl today.

Then, after posting eight photos of the device on his Flickr photostream (linked below), he dropped me a note to let me know you are there.

Now I am letting you know they are here.

Let's look.

Another angle of the box, which as you will see, hyku is set to open.

Open. Check.

The Cingular Pearl, out of the box and front and center.

Out with the old (7290), and in with the smaller, sleeker new.

There's a reason why they call it a "handheld."

Close-up of the screen. Where most of the action is.

And finally, here's to "watching your back," Cingular BlackBerry Pearl!

The other day, BBHub reader Branden sent me a pix he took with his T-Mobile BlackBerry Pearl.

This is a cold, not-quite-winter scene near Coon Rapids, Minnesota.

Photo is at this place, but it is so timeless. Could be anywhere it is clear and 37 degrees, and the peaceful waters have not yet frozen.

But also what's amazing to me is the clarity ofthe scene Branden got. The reflections are perfect.

Makes you feel you are there, doesn't it? All we need are the migrating birds ahead. Guess they already have done that.