We've been so mesmerized by the impending train wreck that is BlackBerry lately that we'd almost forgotten it makes smartphones.

Thankfully, we have a reminder today in the form of a quick video claiming to show off the BlackBerry Z30 (you remember that, don't you?) as it's flipped, swiped and bandied about.

This seems to be a fully functioning version of the rumored BlackBerry 10 device. The user shows off its front and back, then activates the phone and takes us on a short tour of its UI.

A sticker on the rear tells of the device's evaluation unit status, and interestingly it reads "Property of Research In Motion Limited." RIM changed its name to BlackBerry in January, however it appears some properties, such as this website, still use the old RIM moniker.

RIM around the rosy

It feels like it's been awhile since we last heard about the Z30, though in reality the handset made another film appearance earlier this month (that video was subsequently pulled).

In that time, we've learned BlackBerry is open to the idea of being bought, among other "strategic alternatives" to survival. On Aug. 27, a report from the Wall Street Journal claimed BlackBerry could spin BlackBerry Messenger, or BBM, into a subsidiary.

It's before this backdrop that the Z30 could be released. The device is rumored to square up with a 5-inch AMOLED screen (larger than the Z10's 4.2-inch display), house a dual-core Snapdragon S4 processor and 2GB of RAM. It may have 16GB of storage, an 8MP rear camera and run BlackBerry 10.2.

As you can see in the video and other leaks have attested to, the Z30 may have five rows of icons instead of the Z10's four.

When will we see the device? Only BlackBerry knows, but it has a lot on its plate right now, so we'll give it some time.

• BlackBerry, BlackBerry - why release a new phone running BB7?

The next-generation iPhone handset(s) may go on sale on 20 September, if reports suggesting T-Mobile employees in the U.S. have been denied time off during that weekend prove accurate.

The U.S.-based Tmo News website said the mobile network has blocked off September 20-22 (a Friday, Saturday and Sunday) as vacation-free times for its in-store employees.

With the iPhone 5S and perhaps the iPhone 5C scheduled to be announced on September 10, that prospective release date ten days later certainly plays into Apple's previous form in this area.

The company always seems holds iPhone releases on a Friday, for the same reason Hollywood movies come out on the same day - to cash in on weekend sales and then boast about the figures.

Plastic fantastic

Meanwhile, speaking of the iPhone 5C, Apple is shopping around for a top class plastics guy, presumably to oversee its less-premium range iOS devices.

According to the posting on the Apple jobs site, the company is looking to hire an "experienced plastic materials engineer" who can "lead the development of new plastic materials and processes."

The successful applicant will work on the iPhone / iPad materials team and have reponsibilities relating to the aesthetic and cosmetic qualities of the devices.

The company is widely expect to launch a more affordable, dare we say cheap, iPhone 5C with a plastic casing, as a means of tackling emerging emerging markets.

Judging by this jobs posting, it appears their work in that area will be a going concern with the company looking to perfect new materials for the lesser devices.

• Are you ready for the gold, sorry champagne, iPhone 5S? Apple is apparently preparing to broaden its available colour spectrum.

Three has got all official on its 4G plans, confirming that the network's roll-out will begin in December 2013.

If you already have a 4G handset and a Three SIM then 4G speeds won't cost you any extra - all you have to do is install a software update from the network to activate it.

Those on monthly plans with all you can eat data won't see any caps imposed on their data limits either, which sounds like a pretty sweet deal.

Money talks

London, Manchester and Birmingham will be the first cities to get the 4G network, with the switch on set to "accelerate" in January bringing 4G access to over 1.5 million customers in the new year.

By the end of 2014, Three intends to have 4G coverage in 50 cities across the UK, and nearly the whole country covered by the superfast connection by the end of the following year. This is thanks to the numerical networking managing to nab some of the 800MHz spectrum to deploy 4G speeds to the rural parts of the British Isles.

Three is a fairly slow horse in the 4G race though, with EE having launched its 4G network back in October 2012, and Vodafone and O2 following suit today.

• Time to ask the question: which is the best 4G network?

With IFA right around the corner, we've heard plenty from Samsung and LG. HTC, however, is keeping itself in the mix, if inadvertently, with a few reports today shedding light on its potential future plans.

Let's start with the hardware: ePrice (Google translated) claimed it picked up the HTC One Max (possibly a production model) destined for Chinese telecom company Unicom.

This is a dual-SIM variant, equipped with a removable metal rear casing, external memory card and built-in battery. Conspicuously gaping is a square hole under the camera lens, in the exact spot an earlier leak, also courtesy of ePrice, had same-said opening.

The initial report speculated the space was meant for a fingerprint scanner, and though we're no closer to confirmation, it seems the rumor is gaining some credibility.

ePrice also claimed it handled a Max running the beta of a software interface that included a fingerprint control function in a pull-down shortcut menu, and you can see a fingerprint icon in the image to the left.

Just about everything can be faked in this day and age, so treat the existence of the Max's fingerprint scanner like Big Foot: It may be out there, but we'll have to see it to believe it.

OS yes?

HTC's prints may be on more than a finger reader as the Wall Street Journal also reported the Taiwanese firm is developing its own mobile operating system.

The OS, "according to people familiar with the project," would be geared towards Chinese consumers, meaning we're unlikely to see it on phones outside that country.

HTC Chairwoman Cher Wang is supposedly closely overseeing the OS' development, and it's expected to launch before 2013 clocks out.

While it's not clear at this point what HTC's take on the mobile software system would look like, it is said to feature close integration with China-specific apps, such as Weibo, the Chinese-language microblogging site akin to Twitter.

Smartphones running the China-bound OS are reportedly out in the wild, including in the hands of Chinese officials. The government there has encouraged the development of domestic software systems, according the WSJ, to draw away from Western companies such as Google and Apple.

• HTC needs to get its head on ASAP, so here are a few TechRadar suggestions on how it can do it.

Nokia has announced its latest addition to the feature phone market: the Nokia 515.

The Finnish phone giant knows that there's still plenty of life in the feature phone market and that's why it is still releasing handsets like the Nokia 515 - not everyone cares if their phone has the power to fling furious feathered fowl.

According to Simon Barker, Nokia's program manager, feature phones still make up one half of global handsets sold and Nokia is one of the few manufacturers still chipping away at that crowd.

This doesn't mean that the Nokia 515 is a throwaway device, though, as it is pushing the idea that the phone is one for the style conscious, even going as far as saying it will be a phone that you will be "proud to own."

Light weight

We're not sure how much pride you can take in something that offers just a 2.4-inch QVGA LCD display but it does look half decent and is definitely light - weighing in at just 102.7g and measuring a mere 114 x 48 x 11mm.

Given that it's a feature phone, there's not much to shout about in the way of additional extras. But there is a handy 5MP camera on board, which comes coupled with a voice-guided Self Portrait camera - this was first seen (heard) on the Nokia 301.

There will be a dual SIM variant available as well and the handset is 3.5G compatible. As for memory, there is only 256MB of on-board space, but a microSD card slot is a welcomed addition.

Battery life is decent too, with Nokia quoting up to 10.4hrs (but half that if you're using the 3G).

There's no word on a Nokia 515 release date for the UK or US, but it will be arriving in Russia, Germany, Switzerland and Poland as of next week, for a not-too shabby 115 Euros.

Check out the video below:

Google has slashed the price of its Nexus 4 handset, raising suspicions that it may be queuing up its rumoured successor the Nexus 5.

The healthy price cut sees the 16GB LG made Nexus 4 drop from £279 ($349, AU$399) to £199 ($249, AU$299), while the 8GB version is now £159 ($199, AU$249) - down from £239 ($299, AU$349).

Countries benefiting from the reduction of at least 25% are the US, UK, Australia, Canada, France Germany, Spain and Korea.

Now it's certainly not out of the question that this price drop could well signal the impending arrival of the new Nexus 5, with Google keen to clear out the last of its Nexus 4 stock before the new smartphone hits shelves.

New Nexus 5?

Originally it was thought the Moto X could be the next Nexus device, but clearly that isn't the case after it launched earlier this month.

While LG has apparently ruled itself out of the running as the manufacturer for the successor other reports suggest it's still in with a shout, plus there are rumours the now Google-owned Motorola may be the OEM of choice this time round.

Recent reports peg the Nexus 5 as sporting a screen somewhere in the region of 5-inches, a powerful quad-core processor and running a completely new version of Google's operating system: Android 5.0 Key Lime Pie.

In terms of a Nexus 5 release date we're still in the dark, but considering this price drop news we're hoping it'll be with us in time for Christmas.

• Is it still worth buying a Nexus 4? Check out our in-depth review