Released just a couple of months ago, Verizon's Net-connected home phone is already set to get its first software update, and the "Widget Bazaar"including free apps for Internet radio, photos, recipes, and gamingwill be part of the package. Also: Upcoming YouTube and Twitter apps (hopefully, anyway), plus hands-on with new Hub prototypes.

Verizon Wireless reps showed off the new Hub software and a pair of Intel Atom-powered Hub prototypes at a Manhattan hotel today, and from what I've seen so far, it looks like the carrier is moving quickly to address some of the problems I had with Hub version 1.0

While the original, touchscreen Hub ($199 with a two-year contract and a $50 mail-in rebate) comes with plenty of calling options, weather and calendar widgets, streaming videos, and searchable maps, there's no Web browser, news widget, or music player, as well as no easy way to import all your phone contacts

The new Hub firmware (an automatic update set to arrive in the next couple of weeks) isn't a silver bullet for the Web browsing and contact-management problems, but it lays the groundwork for future improvement with the "Widget Bazaar"basically a Hub app store, except (for now, at least) all the widgets are free.

The initial lineup of widgets finally brings some tunes to the Hub with an Internet radio app, along with a photo viewer (good for turning the Hub into a digital photo frame), a pair of games (including a picture puzzle and Sudoku), and widgets for looking up recipes and horoscopes.

Not bad, but Verizon reps also showed off some other apps they're working on, including widgets for YouTube, Twitter, Rhapsody (for streaming music), e-mail, andat lasta Web browser. Even better, a Hub SDK for third-party developers is apparently on the way.

Pretty cool, but there's a holdup. Verizon execs said that since they consider the Hub to be a device for the whole family, they want to add parental controls before unleashing social-networking apps like YouTube and Twitter onto the Hub. OK, but how exactly does Verizon plan on keeping the little ones from watching bad stuff on YouTube? Well, they're working on it, I'm told.

Verizon also had a couple of prototype Hub devices on hand during Wednesday's demoone that looks more like a photo frame with a separated handset base (pictured above), and another that adds a high-quality speaker (or pair of speakers) under the display (below).

The new Hubs would come with capacitive displays (which respond to the lightest touch of a finger) instead of the squishier resistive touch display on the original device, and they'd also run on Intel's new Atom processors rather than on the current Hub's less powerful ARM11 CPU. No word on when we'll actually get a new Hub model, however.

Finally, about those contacts. One of my biggest complaints about the Hub is that there's no way to automatically import all your contacts from, say, your Verizon cell phone or from Gmail or Facebook (instead, you have to key your contacts in manually over Verizon's Web site).

Well, I'm told that a couple of options are on the table: One, using Verizon's existing Backup Assistant (which backs up your cell phone's contacts over the air) to send your contacts to the Hub; and two, a one-way import from online services like Gmail. Again, no word on when either (or both) of those options will happen, but again, it sounds like they're working on it.

Overall, I'm still not entirely sold on the Hub, but I'm glad to see that Verizon is moving quickly with the Widget Bazaar and hardware improvements. Now if they can just get services like Web browsing and (hopefully) Twitter and Rhapsody up and running on the Hub, we might really have something.