February 2009 Archives

Slashgear has recently put up a video giving the breakdown, and walkthrough of Samsung's forthcoming SWD-M100 Mobile Internet Device.

We don't know much about the SWD-M100 other than it runs Windows Mobile 6.1, features an Opera browser, has an accelerometer, and 2-cameras; a 3MP one on the back and a 0.3MP on the front. There is also a microSD memeory card slot for memory expansion and a port for TV output.

Sounds, and looks, cool. I remember when UMPC's first came out and they were all the rage, oh how the times have changed.

Just in case you missed it at the Mobile World Congress, one phone that is packed with features and reasonable pricing is the HTC P3400i.

The HTC phone is a pad form phone with Bluetooth, GPRS/GSM connectivity and Windows 5.0 operating system. The phone has a RAM of 64 MB and an average battery life of 5 hours. A 2.8 MP camera can be your ideal companion while clicking some good pictures.

The P34001 is a touch screen mobile phone by HTC with a sleek and chic design. It is powered by the awesome Windows Mobile 5.0 and gives you a 2.8inch QVGA touch screen. The key applications provided in the phone that will impress you are Direct Push Mail, Office Mobile, Internet Explorer Mobile, Windows Media Player Mobile and Pocket MSN.

Features

A built in voice commander is another thing that will draw your attention. Through this feature, you can not only search or dial a contact more easily, but you can also send SMS and control your music easily only through the command of your voice.

(Source) Best Syndication

Here is a new phone from Samsung which carries an SOS function to help alert local authorities of your position via GPS. It emits an alarm equivalent to your MP3 player at full volume and is a great phone to have for women for added safety and protection.

The handset is set to be unveiled next month in Korea.

(Source) Samsung

We were expecting T-Mobile to roll out Samsung Memoir and that has just happened today. If you need a new 8 megapixel camera phone, then the Memoir might be exactly what you need. Besides the 8 megapixel sensor you will get a Xenon flash, smile and face detection and geo-tagging capabilities. As for the phone you get 3G support, touch support with Samsung's TouchWiz UI and A-GPS.

The phone will cost you $249.99 with a 2-year agreement so you can go right ahead to the nearest T-Mobile store to grab one. What do you think? Are you ready for the Memoir?

Not every hot phone that gets announced will make it to every corner of the world. Sometimes the cool phones arrive to only one certain market which tends to bother everyone else. Well we have some good news for future HTC Touch Pro2 buyers. HTC announced via it's Twitter account:

And to answer the big question on everyone's minds, the Touch Pro2 will be broadly available in all major markets, including North America.

Maybe the Touch Pro2 won't exactly make it to every corner of the world, but it will certainly boldly go where other HTC handsets have never gone before. The phone will begin shipping in late Q2, so get ready to wait.

via HTC

Samsung has a new phone ready to be launched and it looks like Russia is the market it will head to. The Samsung S5600 is the handset we're talking about, but we don't have any of its specs yet. The phone will come in a plastic case and it will use that TouchWiz UI from Samsung. We don't know when the S5600 will arrive and how much it will cost, but we expect it to have a fairly cheap price as it is probably going to be a mid-level handset.

via mobile-review

The P7 PMP from iriver was spotted at CES 2009 but it's only now that it became more official. The PMP has arrived with pictures and features on the official site.

The P7 will feature a 4.3 inch, 480x272 resolution screen, and it will be able to play 35 hours of audio or 7 hours of videos. The P7 will come in 4 versions, 4, 8, 16 and 32GB and it will support lots of codecs so that you'll be able to play most file types available to you. The packaging of the P7 is special too. It can double as a business card holder, a pen holder and even as a picture frame.

While the specs and pictures are already official, the arrival dates and prices aren't available yet. We'll be still waiting for them!

via DAPReview

Motorola VE1 also known as Motorola Ruby or Motorola RAZR3 was supposed to be cancelled. But what do you know, the phone appeared all over a recent press release.

Is the Motorola Ruby VE1 coming anytime soon? The phone should run on UIQ 3 but there's no more UIQ development since the Symbian Foundation appeared. The question still remains. Is Motorola recycling the design? Will we see some sort of a VE1 soon?

via mobile review

INQ1, a social mobile handset from the Hutchison Whampoa company, won the the Best Mobile Handset award earlier at the GSMA in Barcelona. The INQ won the award over four other shortlisted contenders including the Nokia E71, T-Mobile G1, RIM BlackBerry Storm and LG KS360.

This award is the most coveted and fiercely contested prize in the mobile industry and is given to a device with the combination of design, technical excellence and functionality that comes together to position a product at the top of its market.

The INQ is an HSDPA handset that provides one-click access to fully integrated applications including Facebook, Skype, Windows Messenger and Last.fm. The intuitive navigation offered by the switcher key and menu carousel, along with instant information provided by the home screen widgets and the integrated phonebook, deliver an experience so intuitive that it's easy and fun to stay connected.

The INQ has a 3.2MP camera that allows for photos to be directly uploaded to Facebook, while preloaded modem drivers mean the handset can double as a plug and play dongle.

(Source) Press

Nokia 8208 is also present at the MWC and Nokia has announced the CDMA version for markets outside the US. And let's recap the features of this dual slider:

• Dual band CDMA / EV-DO connectivity (800 / 1900 MHz)


• 2.2 inch display with 240 x 320 pixels and 16 million colors


• Nokia S40-like UI


• External music keys


• GPS


• Bluetooth 2.0


• 3.5mm headset jack


• FM Radio


• 3MP camera with flash


• 150MB of internal memory


• 1GB MicroSD card in the box (support for up to 16GB)


• Talk time: up to 4 hours


• Standby time: up to 11 days


• 101 x 45.2 x 15.9 millimeters


• 126.3 grams

via Nokia

Dell launched its latest model today, the Dell Inspiron Mini 10. The Dell Inspiron Mini 10 is a mini-notebook that adds keyboard comfort and even more entertainment-friendly dimensions to the Inspiron Mini family.

Like the Inspiron Mini 9 and Mini 12, the Mini 10 is a compact, easy-to-carry Internet companion featuring wireless and entertainment capabilities to help keep kids, tweens, teens, travelers and "Tweeters" chatting, blogging, streaming content, sharing photos, watching videos and more.

Features:

Mini 10 optional features planned for later this year include:

(Source) Press

It looks like the M8 from Meizu is finally available... again. It was available about a week ago but that was a beta version filled with bugs and problems. Nonetheless that was available for sale for $440. Too much you say? Well it's too expensive even without the bugs. If you didn't buy the M8 before don't go buy it now either. You won't miss a thing. And considering that MWC has revealed at list three worthy phones ready to compete against the iPhone, you might be better of choosing one of those.

via DAP Review

Pantech has just released a new phone, the Matrix PRO. The phone features HSDPA connectivity, GPS with AT&T Navigator, Bluetooth, a 2 megapixel camera, Video Share support and Windows Mobile 6.1 Standard. Nothing you haven't seen before right? But get ready for this, the Matrix PRO has two slider mechanisms, one for a full QWERTY keyboard and one for a keypad. Simply slide-out the one you need at any time. The phone will be available from AT&T at some point although there's no official announcement regarding release dates and prices.

via AT&T

[caption id="attachment_25823" align="alignleft" width="270" caption="LG GD900"][/caption]

The GD900, which LG debuted at the GSMA World Congress, is billed as the world's first phone with a transparent design handset. Not everything on the slider handset is transparent (the mechanical components are the old-fashioned opaque variety) but the rear slider is translucent and the keypad gives off a glittering show. LG promises a Bluetooth headset is in the works which will match the clear design of the phone itself.

Technical details about the GD900 were sparse at the show, but LG promises it will bring out the specs for review later this year. In the meantime, the GD900 has a futuristic look that is bound to win some devotees early on. As more and more cell phone manufacturers compete to include new applications and electronic features, style and simplicity in the user interface tend to get overlooked. Often it is the simple but beautiful item that wins out in the end. Expect the LG GD900 clear handset phone to show up in stores sometime in the third quarter of 2009.

I bet you're tired with all the phones Samsung has been throwing at us lately. But you shouldn't be. It's good to know you'll have where to choose from. The Omnia HD for example will be a great phone and it appears it will be the first phone in the world to record 720p video. The feature is not confirmed yet but we're hoping it will be in just a few days. The Omnia HD is also said to sport a 3.7-inch AMOLED display but we're going to need confirmation for those features too.

We've already told you how Microsoft and LG partnered up to offer more than 50 LG Windows phones by 2012. And LG decided to launch a smartphone to mark the special occasion. The LG-GM730 will be available in the first half of the year and it will run Windows Mobile 6.1 Professional Edition for starters. The phone will also be able to run on Windows Mobile 6.5 in the second part of the year. The GM730 will get a new S-Class 3D user interface which we've already seen in the Arena and it will have Internet Explorer Mobile 6.0 installed. We still lack all the details of this LG smartphone but we're expecting to get them soon enough.

via Press

The swivel phone in the picture here is a Sony Ericsson new handset. But is it the Reese? Will we see it at the MWC?

The Reese comes with "a unique swivel design reveals a QWERTY keypad below the large portrait screen which allows you to view several messages of any one kind in high definition. It also comes with one-click access to your favorite networking sites. So now it's never been easier to keep up with your mates."

We don't have all the details about the Reese but we're counting on Sony Ericsson to announce it at the MWC.

via esato

When news of the Hikaru came out some days ago, this was actually the code name for the latest powerhouse multimedia phone by Sony Ericsson. Today that codename has been decoded and given the proper model name in the Sony Ericsson W995. This new phone aims to combine cyber-shot technology with the Walkman and become one of the high-end handsets for the company.

"With Media Go™ there's no need to worry about format, resolution and 'frame per second' anymore." said Alexandre Cardon, Global Marketing Business Manager at Sony Ericsson. "No longer will the video you transferred from your PC to your phone play in low resolution or bad quality. With Media Go™ and the W995 the experience is as good on your phone as it was on your PC."

"The W995 Walkman™ phone brings together the very best music experiences of any phone, augments this with best in class video and sharing capabilities to offer the most complete communication entertainment package to date." said Alexandre Cardon. "This powerful mobile phone delivers the best possible video resolution that can fit in your pocket and with enough battery stamina to watch two full length feature films. The W995 also comes complete with the award winning clear audio experience and an 8.1 megapixel camera for the highest quality picture and sound available in a mobile phone."

This promises to be a fantastic addition to Sony Ericsson's portfolio. An 8 megapixel camera, Clear Audio experience, 2.6-inch screen and Wi-Fi in one package makes this phone truly awesome. The phone will ship during Q2 this year in the colours Cosmic Silver, Energetic Red, and Progressive Black.

Well, well, what we thought to be a mid-range Cybershot phone might have a trick up its sleeve after all. We already know about its 3.2 megapixel camera, 2.2-inch QVGA display, accelerometer, and that nifty YouTube upload feature, but what we missed the last time is the direct integration of Facebook in the Sony Ericsson C510, a first for any cell phone right now. According to mobile.se, once it is installed and launched, the Facebook app will be able to retrieve relevant data from Facebook and provide features like viewing friends' status, photos, the user's groups, and also directly upload a picture to the user's Facebook account.

Go here to watch Facebook Mobile in action (Swedish) or you could wait till this coming Sunday, when Sony Ericsson and Facebook will reportedly go public during a press conference in Barcelona.

UnwiredView

Sony Ericsson has launched a new camera phone. The anticipated phone is the Idou, which features a 12.1-megapixel camera with auto focus and an array of advanced camera touch features such as true 16:9 widescreen format and a xenon flash. The 'Idou' is one of a number of projects that will be launched this year under the umbrella of Entertainment Unlimited.

Idou encapsulates the future of mobile entertainment in the palm of your hand delivering visual communication like never before.

Based on what will become the Symbian Foundation operating system, thousands of applications are available online letting you install new applications and download exciting content from PlayNow™ to make the Idou truly yours.

Dick Komiyama, President, Sony Ericsson said, "Entertainment Unlimited is at the core of Sony Ericsson's philosophy, building on the strength of our great entertainment assets such as Walkman and Cyber-shot phones and our unique service and applications integration. Many of the strategic initiatives we've announced in the past year have laid the internal framework to launch this new consumer proposition to the market and Sony Ericsson is now ready to drive the next wave of market development with Entertainment Unlimited."

Idou will be available 2nd Half of 2009. *"Idou" is a concept name for this phone and not the final name under which the product will be marketed to the public.

If you want the Memoir camera phone from Samsung, then T-Mobile is the carrier you'll want to go to starting with February 25. The phone will be available for $249.99 after $50 mail-in rebate and with a two-year contract. Yes it's expensive!

I think I mentioned this a few times already and I'll say it again: the Memoir offers an 8 megapixel camera with a Xenon flash, CMOS auto focus, 16x digital zoom, a full touchscreen and a camera menu that will take your pictures to the max. The phone will sport features like blink detection, face detection, anti-shake and geotagging. Ready to pay the price for the Memoir?

via Press

It's not the Blue Earth from Samsung and it's not LG's future solar phone but it's a solar phone nonetheless. It's the ZTE's Coral-200-Solar phone from Digicel meant to be a cell phone solution for those regions of the world where people don't have any power outlets available or can't afford them. That's about 2 billion people around the world, so making a solar mobile seems a rather logical decision. The phone will charge its battery on its own, straight from that solar power. It will be available in June for an undisclosed yet price.

via ZTE

Where were these Motorola handsets hiding? We don't need one in particular but it's surprising that they happened to pop out in the open out of nowhere. Is Motorola getting ready for a big announcement or what? These phones are the QA1, QA4 and VE66LX. We have no clear details about any of them but they might be officially announced next week in Spain. Interested in any of the sliders above? Do you have any info on either of them? Send it our way so we can share it with everyone else.

via mobile review

After selling over a million units around the world, Nokia has finally decided to tap the States market after all and if the rumors are to be believed, the release date is right around the corner and Nokia's first ever touchscreen cell phone could hit the shelves by February 26, 2009.

According to The Nokia Blog, the NAM-flavored, 3G-toting Nokia XpressMusic 5800 has already started appearing on some of the major distributors' systems with a suggested price tag of $399, subject to change by the retailer or the carrier that will pick it up. While we all know that Nokia clearly has a winner with more than a million units sold, it remains to be seen if the North American version will do as well as its best-selling counterparts in Europe or be obscured by the upcoming N97.

Sony Ericsson has announced the C903 Cyber-Shot camera phone and I must say that we were expecting this one to arrive. And this phone is so much closer to a camera than other Cyber-Shots before him. Let's take a look at the camera specs first:

• 5.0 megapixel camera


• Up to 16x digital zoom


• Photo fix


• Picture blogging


• Video blogging


• Auto focus


• Smile Shutter™


• Face detection


• BestPic™


• Photo flash


• Video recording


• Image and Video stabilizer


• Snapfish™

Interested in the capabilities of the C903? Well here they are:

• Auto rotating 2.4" display


• TV-out


• aGPS support


• Quad band GSM/GPRS/EDGE connectivity (850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900 MHz)


• Dual-band UMTS/HSPA connectivity (900 / 2100 MHz); or tri-band UMTS/HSPA (850 / 1900 / 2100 MHz) for the C903a version


• TV-out


• NetFront Web browser


• Stereo Bluetooth


• 105MB of internal memory

via Press