In the midst of all the economic carnage -- including layoffs of the corporate types who have been tethered to email and sports alerts 24/7 -- the smartphone wars not only continue unabated but also seem to be gathering momentum. Not to be outdone by Apple's second-generation iPhone or Google's first iteration of a Google Android, Research in Motion's BlackBerry is coming out with three new models for the T-Mobile, AT&T and Verizon networks, respectively. David Pogue reviews two of them this morning -- the BlackBerry Bold 9000 ($300 with a two-year AT&T contract) and the BlackBerry ...

Netflix and TiVo are unveiling a plan today to offer customers films on demand via the Internet, David Lieberman writes. By early December, Netflix will stream any of 12,000 movies and TV shows to its subscribers who also subscribe to TiVo and have a Series 3 or high-definition DVR connected to broadband. "The two were seen making eyes at each other back in 2004," writes Ryran Kim in The Tech Chronicles on SF Gate.com , but licensing and technical issues kept the relationship from blooming. The agreement helps TiVo's effort to position itself ...

The dot-dot-dot in our headline represents the phrase "at least partially" in the lede of the Women's Wear Daily story by Marc Karimzadeh. We're just doing our bit to get your mind off of wars and crises and things. Victoria, wife of soccer great David, who is a "steamy" Armani underwear model in his own right, is also, as we know, a "designer-singer-fashion maven." Victoria's ads -- shot by Mert Alas and Marcus Piggott in Los Angeles Wednesday -- will be unveiled for the spring season, and are part of Armani's global underwear push for ...

n. Style and elegance on a tight budget. Example citation from Gwen Halley writing in Ireland's Herald : "Because you have to ask why [Marks & Spencer] -- bastion of sleek, chic, understated style -- would belatedly embrace fussy, decadent, fast-fashion Carrie [of "Sex & The City] when everyone is moving towards recession chic; which means investing in shift dresses instead of smock dresses and stilettos instead of wedges. "Recession chic" also has been spotted on this side of the pond, as recently as last week. If we're ...

A bigger story than the 11% leap in stock prices yesterday, in the eyes of the Times, is the pullback in the credit card market, which it says is affecting even creditworthy consumers. Let's face it, even the most bullish among us don't expect that yesterday's sudden -- if ethereal -- surge in consumers' net worths will lead to their spreading the wealth around anytime soon (note, too, that consumer confidence was reported at an "all-time low" Tuesday by the Conference Board ). But the consumer credit squeeze is on as limits get maxed out, defaults mount ...

An Information Resources Inc. survey of 1,000 consumers over the last two weeks indicates that consumers plan to eschew brand labels this holiday season in favor of cheaper generics. According to Jack Neff's story, a "whopping" 91% say they will be putting private-label foods on the family table, and 51% say they will use private-label products whenever possible. The usual percentages are 30% to 35%, according to Thom Blischok, president-innovation and consulting for IRI. The firm projects consumer spending to hold up at around 2007 levels. Blischok predicts that big-box stores such as Walmart and Costco could be ...

Kraft's third-quarter profits, which were announced this morning, slightly beat analysts' expectations, as did Kellogg's earnings. Procter & Gamble profits are up 9% for the quarter, Reuters reports , as consumers seem to be willing to pay price increases imposed to offset higher commodity and energy costs. And on the media front, Times editor Bill Keller told a newsroom gathering that "I do not see another round of newsroom staff reductions on the horizon," according to Fishbowl NY .