With cell phone theft increasing at an unhealthy rate globally, some companies and research facilities have come up with innovative and useful ways to combat it. Here are 9 Antitheft Cell Phone technologies that are upcoming and available globally in the market today.

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It’s black, fits in your shirt pocket, offers 10-20GB storage and allows sharing of digital files via USB, Bluetooth or WiFi. It’s called DAVE, which stands for Digital Audio Video Experience.

Mobile telephony is undergoing a multimedia revolution, and the DAVE mobile content platform will provide even more fuel for the growth of new music and video services over mobile networks,” said Patrick King, senior vice president and general manager of Seagate’s consumer electronics business unit. “Products using DAVE technology will enable digital content, whether for business or entertainment use, to be stored, moved, and connected in ways never before possible. Mobile carriers can use this technology for creating value from their investments in high-bandwidth networks, and mobile handset manufacturers have another tool for turning the multimedia phone into the center of the mobile consumer’s digital life.

Battery life is up to 14 days on standby and 10 hours of continuous use. The little device comes in at 3.5 x 4.7 x .47 inches (61 x 89 x 12 mm) and weighs only 2.5 ounces (70 grams). Sorry, because it is so topsecret, there aren’t any pictures of it available yet. However, you could sit through Robert Scoble’s podcast (below) to have a glimpse of it.

Here are some ways of how DAVE could prove useful:

* Makes upgrading mobile phones easy - storing content on a DAVE-based device makes upgrading a mobile phone fast and easy. Simply pair the device to the new handset, and start enjoying digital content on the new phone in just minutes.

* Turns the mobile phone into a DVR/MP3 powerhouse - consumers can now download video from mobile phone networks; grab music from online, mobile, or PC libraries; load audiobooks or GPS data; and use all of that data as needed when on-the-go. The 10GB version will make 2,500 songs or 21 hours of video available to mobile consumers all the time, anywhere.

* Increases use of mobile entertainment networks and data services - with massive storage capacity, mobile network operators can now offer consumers the opportunity to download and enjoy large media and data files. With video files downloaded to products based on the DAVE platform instead of streamed through the mobile network, video can now be delivered without latency or coverage issues. DAVE-based products will also enable new business models for high-bandwidth networks, such as try-and-buy content, that offer real value for consumers.

* Enables mobile lifeblogging and other social networking applications - the ability to record massive video and photo files on the mobile phone, edit and annotate content, then upload to social networking sites such as YouTube or MySpace is now mobile and spontaneous. Consumers can also use the DAVE technology features to share the content with other mobile phones, PCs, wireless-enabled cameras, or even other DAVE mobile storage devices.

Seagate plans to launch DAVE devices through Telco and Cell Phone providers starting the second quarter of this year. Oh, did we tell you that DAVE technology will be Open Source ? Yes, I believe that has made all of the developers out there smile.

Via [Scobleizer] Press Release [Seagate]

Not everyone wants to be associated with the Apple iPhone, Verizon has turned down a deal to be the exclusive distributor of iPhone. But Verizon may be doing that for the right reasons.

Among other things, Apple wanted a percentage of the monthly cellphone fees, say over how and where iPhones could be sold and control of the relationship with iPhone customers, said Jim Gerace, a Verizon Wireless vice president. “We said no. We have nothing bad to say about the Apple iPhone. We just couldn’t reach a deal that was mutually beneficial.”

Apple now has no other choice but to work with Cingular (now AT & T). There are no financial terms made known to the press but reliable sources have said that it is a 5-year, USA-only exclusivity contract. That leaves Apple a free hand to market iPhone to the rest of the world. Whether or not Apple will try to push the same conditions as proposed to Verizon remains to be seen. But I guess Apple will make it a condition that the terms of the negotiation will not be made public for fear it would embarrass Apple the second time should any carrier decided not to dance along with Apple. With all those ridiculous terms and conditions imposed by Steve Jobs, who in the right mind would?

Read [USA Today]

Starbucks will expect to sell digital songs and videos within a year. With his recent speech at New York’s Levin Institute, CEO Howard Schultz expects customers to be able to “walk into a Starbucks and digitally be able to fill up your MP3 player with music”. Their October 2006 agreement with Apple have increased speculation that the download platform for their instore downloads will probably be Apple iTunes.

Via [The Seattle Times]

D-Link has introduced the “pay-as-you-go” V-Click dual mode phone allowing easy switching between cellular and Wi-Fi networks.

The phone will begin shipping within the next few months and will feature tri-band GSM (900/1800/1900 mhz) and 802.11 network access. SIM Smartcard usage automatically gains GSM access. With a touch of the V-Click button, the user can activate or deactivate the Wi-Fi connection allowing access to the internet or an internet phone service.

Boasting a sleek form factor of approximately 4.17″ x1.73″ x 0.75″, the V-Click phone will come in different colors styles, support Opera MobileTM (a Wi-Fi hotspot browser) and a 2 inch (176×200 px) bright color screen.

For security of transmissions, the V-Click phone offers WEP , WPA and WPA2 standards based encryption. Users can purchase call time from service providers and load it up using the SIM card. Costing around $600, a hefty price for a “pay-as-you-go” phone, it would initially be available through D-Link’s website.

News Release [D-link]