Latest Mobile Review

quotes about life

2011-04-11T06:59:00.000-07:00

www.great-quotes.com/quotes/category/Life

iPhone system

2011-03-26T06:09:00.000-07:00

The i phone is a mobile of Internet and multimedia-enabled smart phone. It is designed by Apple Inc. I Phone 3g is the 2nd generation phone of I phone. It is deigned in june9 2008. Like other device it has also many problem to solve those You can visit the following website.
http://www.iphone3gsystem.net/
The operating system of iphone is like the older version of ipad, iphone etc.It is controlled by the multistrips of the multi touch display which is sensitive.The Software is distributed from the apple store.

Rumored HTC Dragon photographed (maybe)

2009-10-19T12:05:00.000-07:00

There's quite some murmur going about town about the so-called HTC Dragon. Someone did manage to get their hands on a prime suspect - an unknown HTC phone running Android. What's clear from the spy shots is that the device is a GSM phone with 3G connectivity. The back shows a camera with an LED flash and a Google logo, which suggests this is a "Google experience" phone.

There's quite some murmur going about the so-called HTC Dragon. So far, all we know is that it will be some kind of Android super phone powered by a Snapdragon CPU (notice the dragon-ish naming scheme). The display of this beast is a capacitive touchscreen with WVGA resolution.

Or so the rumors go anyway. A user named Reignzone from xda-developers.com got hold of a build of Android intended to run on the HTC Dragon and coaxed out some information. He also goes on to say it's based on v2.0 of Android (a.k.a. Eclair) and provides some screenshots of the interface - it's Sense UI through and through.

Alleged screenshots of the HTC Dragon interface

Read this with a grain of salt, as there are inconsistencies - the screenshots report the version as 1.5 and as the more vigilant among you will spot - the screenshots have a lower, HVGA resolution, though this is because the ROM wasn't running on an actual Dragon, which remains elusive so far.

Notice the firmware version and the aspect ratio

And this is the first time anyone has got a hold of one - or at least of an HTC smartphone with a name that's still unknown.

Could this be the HTC Dragon? And if so, is it based on HD2 hardware or not?

It's possible (or just wishful thinking) that the HTC Dragon (surely a codename) is going to be an Android version of the HTC HD2. The little we know so far (if it's even correct), matches up with the HD2. There are obvious discrepancies between the two - Android-specific keys and a trackball, in place of the Windows-specific keys.

Come to think of it, it's not impossible - just look at the Acer Liquid and neoTouch. It's the exact same deal - similar hardware running Android in one instance (Liquid) and Windows Mobile in the other (neoTouch). HTC could be doing the same with the HD2 and the Dragon.

Things to keep an eye on - Reignzone says that the HTC Dragon is "dubbed Zoom 2", and in the screenshots there's a link to www.htc.com/dragon, which doesn't work yet however.

Samsung T401G

2009-10-19T12:04:00.000-07:00

General 2G Network GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900
Announced 2009, October
Status Coming soon. Exp. release 2009, December
Size Dimensions 111.8 x 50.8 x 17.8 mm
Weight 123 g
Display Type TFT, 65K colors
Size 176 x 220 pixels, 2.1 inches
- QWERTY keyboard
Sound Alert types Vibration; MP3 ringtones
Speakerphone Yes
Memory Phonebook 1000 entries, Photocall
Call records 30 dialed, 30 received, 30 missed calls
Card slot microSD (TransFlash) up to 16GB
Data GPRS Class 10 (4+1/3+2 slots), 32 - 48 kbps
HSCSD Yes
EDGE Class 10, 236.8 kbps
3G No
WLAN No
Bluetooth Yes, v2.0 with A2DP
Infrared port No
USB Yes, v2.0
Camera Primary 1.3 MP, 1280 x 1024 pixels
Video Yes
Secondary No
Features Messaging SMS, MMS, Email
Browser WAP 2.0/xHTML
Radio No
Games Yes
Colors Black
GPS No
Java Yes, MIDP 2.0
- MP3/MP4/H.263/H.264 player
- Organizer
- Voice memo
- T9
Battery Standard battery, Li-Ion
Stand-by Up to 360 h
Talk time Up to 5 h

i-mobile TV658 Touch&Move

2009-10-19T12:01:00.000-07:00

General 2G Network GSM 900 / 1800 / 1900
Announced 2009, October
Status Available. Released 2009, October
Size Dimensions 111 x 56 x 13 mm
Weight
Display Type TFT touchscreen, 256K colors
Size 240 x 400 pixels, 3.0 inches
- Accelerometer sensor
Sound Alert types Vibration; Downloadable polyphonic, MP3 ringtones
Speakerphone Yes
Memory Phonebook 1000 entries, Photocall
Call records Yes
Card slot microSD (TransFlash), buy memory
Data GPRS Class 10 (4+1/3+2 slots), 32 - 48 kbps
HSCSD No
EDGE Class 10, 236.8 kbps
3G No
WLAN No
Bluetooth Yes, v1.2 with A2DP
Infrared port No
USB Yes, miniUSB
Camera Primary 8 MP, 3264x2448 pixels, autofocus
Features Face and smile detection
Video Yes
Secondary No
Features Messaging SMS, MMS, Email, Push Email
Browser WAP 2.0/xHTML
Radio FM radio, built-in antenna
Games Yes
Colors Black
GPS No
Java Yes
- Dual SIM
- TV tuner
- MP3 player
- MP4/3GP player
- Organizer
- Voice memo
- T9
Battery Standard battery, Li-Ion 1050 mAh
Stand-by Up to 300 h
Talk time Up to 4 h

Satio vs. Pixon12: 12MP shootout teaser

2009-10-16T23:15:00.002-07:00

Introduction

It took cameraphones exactly one year to take the next step in their evolution, closing the gap on dedicated digicams even more. As usual we are here, carefully tracking the progress and checking out if it's going in the right direction.

Samsung M8910 Pixon12 and the Sony Ericsson Satio are easily two of the most interesting phones in our database and their appeal is in no small part due to the 12 megapixel shooters that are mounted on their backs.

Sony Ericsson Satio • Samsung M8910 Pixon12

Back in the day, Samsung INNOV8 was first to exceed even the most optimistic expectations producing photos of quality unknown to the GSM world before. We are now curious if the Satio and the Pixon12 will take another leap forward, to virtually null the difference in image quality between cameraphones and digicams.

Of course the answer to that question will come in the form of one of our trademark full-blown shootouts but until that's finished we decided to give you some food for thought. We've posted several camera samples that we took with the retail units of Samsung M8910 Pixon12 and Sony Ericsson Satio for you to enjoy and compare.

The two competitors

For now we will refrain from passing any judgment on the image quality, leaving the stage to you instead. Feel free to drop a line in the comment section about which of the two cameras you like better.

So take a comfortable seat and prepare to meet the future of cameraphones. A host of 12 megapixel samples awaits after the jump.

Samsung I7500 Galaxy

2009-10-16T23:15:00.001-07:00

Introduction

Android is set on grabbing the number two spot in the smartphone market by 2012 and the Samsung I7500 Galaxy might be the type of phone to get it there. Perhaps less for the Galaxy at this point, and more for the Samsung, but we'll see about that.

Samsung I7500 Galaxy official photos

The I7500 Galaxy is a "Google experience" phone, and has the intrinsic advantage of having the search giant's infrastructure behind its back. For one, YouTube and Picasa integration sure add value to the 5-megapixel camera.

And as to people who spend their time digging around the Internet for oft hard to find information, we really appreciate the improved search widget. And that thingy is about to get better - Android is a bit like Google's other projects, a perpetual work in progress that keeps getting new features and polishes the occasional rough edges.

The I7500 Galaxy is the company's first take on Android but if we put the OS aside, it should be a solid Samsung touchscreen with all the gadgetry we've got used to in smartphones. Of course, the Android platform still has a few issues to address and get some annoying limitations out of the way. Let's see what this here Android by Samsung can do for you and where it might fail.

Key features

Quad-band GSM/GPRS/EDGE support
3G with HSDPA 7.2 Mbps and HSUPA 5.76Mbps
Android OS v1.5 (codenamed Cupcake) without customizations
3.2" capacitive AMOLED touchscreen of HVGA resolution
Qualcomm MSM72000A 528MHz CPU, 128MB RAM
5 MP autofocus camera with LED flash, geo-tagging, YouTube and Picasa integration
Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g and GPS receiver
Accelerometer sensor for auto-rotate and turn-to-mute
Digital compass for automatic navigation of maps
Standard microUSB port for charging and data
microSD card slot with microSDHC support
8GB internal storage
Stereo Bluetooth (A2DP)
3.5 mm audio jack

Main disadvantages

No smart dialing
Camera features are a bit outdated
No videocalling
No multi-touch gestures
No Flash support in the web browser (coming soon via the Open Screen Project)
No DivX/XviD video support or a third-party application to play that
No FM radio
No TV-out port
No voice dialing
Somewhat limited 3rd party software availability
No Bluetooth file transfers (not without rooting)
No tethering (not without a custom ROM)

Samsung I7500 Galaxy live shots

Samsung have established a strong presence in the touchscreen market. Their usual weapon of choice is TouchWiz, which brings PocketPCs and feature phones closer together, projecting a consistent brand image.

With the Galaxy, they're stepping out of their comfort zone - a new OS and a new interface. TouchWiz for Android is yet to come (and in the case of I7500 never is more likely than later).

To make sure it does well, Samsung have equipped the Galaxy to match to specs of the top Android phones available on the market. And it sure needs every bit of ammo if it's going to challenge the well-entrenched HTC Hero. The I7500 Galaxy can take it on spec for spec and even win a few rounds.

But that's on paper, and we guess you're curious to see the real deal. Jump to the next page for this Einstein's worth of a question: what is the Galaxy made of?

Palm Pre lands in UK, we've also got prices in Spain and Ireland

2009-10-16T23:14:00.001-07:00

Finally, as of today, you can also purchase Palm Pre in the UK and Ireland. Germany was first to get the long awaited GSM Palm Pre and a day later on 14 October 2009, it became available in Spain as well. And exactly as planned the UK and Ireland will be able to get it with O2 offering it exclusively.

While the Palm Pre pricing in Germany and the UK have been announced long before the launch date those in Spain and Ireland have still been unknown. Till now that is.

The citizens of Germany who intend to purchase a new Palm Pre at a local O2 store should prepare 481 euro for the device (with or without a contract). However, that price doesn't include any free minutes or data (last time we checked, a data plan costs additional 8.50 euro a month).

In the United Kingdom you can get the Palm Pre for free after signing an 18-month agreement with O2 and you will have to pay at least 44.05 GBP (good 48 euro) a month. At first. But keep in mind that in UK you also get up to 3000 minutes to all UK networks, tons of text messages and unlimited data and Wi-Fi.

One of the most anticipated mobile phones of the year is already on sale at the O2 stores in Ireland, as well. The most affordable way to get it with included minutes and data is to sign an 18-month contract with a monthly fee of 40 euro and pay additional 49 euro for the phone itself. Pay-as-you-go customers will be able to get it for 419 euro.

To get the Palm Pre for free in Spain through Movistar you'll have to sign a two-tear contract with a 54.90 euro monthly.

Well, some of those numbers certainly are steep but nobody said the Palm Pre was going to be cheap in the first place. Go ahead and tell us do you think of buying the Palm Pre in the comments.

We've got the first live shot of SE XPERIA X3 (Rachael)

2009-10-16T23:12:00.000-07:00

After several leaked “official” Sony Ericsson XPERIA X3 images and even a video demonstrating how its UI should look like, now we have something even more tempting – the first live shot of the device.

The first Android-powered device by Sony Ericsson was first spotted 3 months ago. A few days later we saw its user interface caught on video and now we have its first pic shot in the wild.

We admit, the image might be on the small side and of rather low quality but it's the long awaited sign that the official announce of Sony Ericsson XPERIA X3 is getting closer.

All the fuss around the XPERIA X3 (which you might also know as Rachael) is not only because of its hot looks but also because of what's hiding underneath.

The device will run Android OS and comes with the superfast Qualcomm QSD8250 Snapdragon 1 GHz CPU. Reportedly, the Sony Ericsson XPERIA X3 will feature HSDPA and Wi-Fi support as well as an integrated GPS receiver.

Also aboard are expected to be a large 4-inch capacitive touchscreen display of 852 x 480 pixels resolution and an 8 megapixel autofocus sharpshooter. We look forward to seeing more of the XPERIA X3 live, so if you've got one lying around, snap a pic for us and send it over, please!

BlackBerry Bold 9700 now official, thanks to T-Mobile Germany

2009-10-15T07:43:00.000-07:00

Today T-Mobile Germany updated their online catalog with the BlackBerry Bold 9700 coming in November. Finally the long rumored Bold 2 is official and you won't have to wait long to grab one.

BlackBerry Bold 9700 or Bold 2, previously rumored under the codename Onyx, is now official thanks to the German T-Mobile web site. Today they updated their catalog with the second Bold and its specifications and then later on went on and removed it - an obvious case of false start.

The QWERTY business handset will sport a 2.6-inch TFT display with 480x360 pixels resolution, 3.2 megapixel autofocus camera with LED flash, all-round connectivity package (HSDPA, Wi-Fi, GPS, Bluetooth) and microSD card slot. As you may expect it will run the BlackBerry OS 5.

HTC Tattoo gets cool body art - website helps personalize covers

2009-10-15T07:42:00.001-07:00

HTC Tattoo lives up to its name and rebels by getting a tattoo. Mom and Dad at HTC are cool with it - they even set up a whole site dedicated to inking the Tattoo. Modifying the looks of your mobile phone is on the rise recently but most end up a diamond-encrusted golden mess. Not these ones - they range from serious to ironic, and thankfully lack Swarovski crystals.

A "tattoo" is a custom cover adding a design to the front and back of the HTC Tattoo. Don't think it's just tribal tattoos, there are 15 different designs ranging from ones that look like actual tattoos to colorful blobs that probably won't look very good on your shoulder but really bring the plain back cover to life.

Here are a few of the pre-made designs

If you're not happy with walking into the shop and picking a design from the wall, there's a pretty versatile tool on the site that allows you to make your own. It allows you to pick a general color for the phone, a pattern to spice it up, then you can add text and predefined symbols to it. And if that isn't personalized enough for you, upload your own image, to slap on the HTC Tattoo.

Hm... on second thought, opening tattooarena.com is probably not a good idea

The price for a ready made design is 11.99 euro and custom designs cost 14.99 euro. For each shipment there's 3.90 euro shipping costs. This of course excludes any local taxes, VAT or duties - those depend on your national customs policies, but bear in mind that the tattooed covers are shipped from China and Hong Kong.

Head over to tattoomyhtc.com and make yourself one mean-looking Android device.

Ovi Suite 2.0 makes it out of beta status - Nokia users go grab some

2009-10-15T07:41:00.000-07:00

So that's that with the development of Nokia Ovi Suite 2.0. The application has now officially graduated from Beta status and its version 2.0.0.10 release is already being distributed to current beta users as we speak.

In the words of Nokia BetaLabs developers, the new Nokia Ovi Suite 2.0 is now "the one and only Nokia desktop application" phasing out the use of the various separately available desktop apps by Nokia such as Nokia PC Suite, Nokia Nseries PC Suite, Nokia Ovi Suite, Nokia Software Updater, Nokia Map Loader, Nokia Music, Nokia Lifeblog, Nokia Photos, Nokia Device Status, and Nokia PC Suite Enterprise Edition.

The existing Ovi Suite 2.0 beta users can get the release through the Web update, while the rest can find it at the Nokia website. The Ovi Suite will also be making its way into product CD/DVDs in Nokia handsets retail packages.

According to the Finish company the final version of the Ovi Studio has made the best use of the massive feedback it has received from the beta testers. The issues should all be solved and the app should be much more stable (and hopefully even more useful) now.

Currently Nokia Ovi Suite 2.0 supports exactly 142 different device models from Nokia (the number grows beyond 200, if you count in all different variants). You can download it by following this direct link (Windows OS, around 88MB).

If it still isn't exactly what you need, don't worry - Nokia are already working on the next version with the next Beta coming up in a few months.

Acer Liquid goes live with Android 1.6 and 1GHz Snapdragon CPU

2009-10-15T01:28:00.001-07:00

Today Acer officially announced the Android-running Liquid full touchscreen handset. Rumors about the handset have been swarming online for several months but it's only now that it gets a proper announcement and we can safely say it's the most powerful Android handset to date (if we don't count the rumored XPERIA X3, of course).

Strangely enough Acer didn't show any photo of the device itself but as far as the specs go, there's no stopping it from becoming one of the hottest names of the season.

Acer Liquid packs a 1GHz Qualcomm 8250 Snapdragon CPU, identical to the ones found in HTC HD2, Toshiba TG01 and its cousin Acer neoTouch S200 (pictured on the left). The handset will run on Android OS ver. 1.6 (codenamed Donut) and will have an Acer home brew UI preinstalled.

The Liquid will pack the first 3.5" WVGA display in the Android world. It will use the capacitive technology as its siblings but the size and resolution advantage turn it into a real winner - at least on paper.

The other highlight features of the Acer Liquid include quad-band GSM support, HSPDA 7.2Mbps, HSUPA, Wi-Fi, and GPS. Despite not being mentioned in the press release, we can also expect a 5 MP camera, stereo FM radio, microSD card slot as well as Bluetooth and USB connectivity.

We are yet to see any information about the availability and the pricing of the Acer Liquid. Oh yeah, a photo or two wouldn't be too bad either.

Samsung S7550 Blue Earth picks Sweden for its first sun bathing

2009-10-15T01:24:00.000-07:00

Being eco-friendly is increasingly important to companies (or rather to their public image). But whatever the reason, the end result are several eco-friendly phones - the latest of which is Samsung S7550 or otherwise known as Blue Earth.

Samsung S7550 Blue Earth is the most advanced eco-friendly phone by the South Korean giant and besides charging from the sun it's capable enough in GPS navigation, Wi-Fi connectivity and it packs enough TouchWizardry to keep the crowds entertained.

The S7550 Blue Earth will start selling this month with shipments already started towards... Sweden. Yes, Sweden of all places, will be the first country to welcome the Blue Phone by Samsung. Other countries should follow soon.

The timing of this announcement is anything else but accidental - it's been only a couple of days ago that LG reminded us of their new eco-friendly LG GD510 Pop, which boasts environmentally conscious materials and design, as well as an optional solar panel. The Pop is set to launch in Europe mid-October (so it should be days away).

France, Germany, Austria, Italy, Portugal along with other European and Asian countries will be getting the S7550 Blue Earth "soon after" the Sweds. How soon however is not really clear.

Are Samsung finding it hard to close operator deals for the Blue Earth - perhaps operators are not really ready to welcome the eco efforts of the manufacturers and those products are doomed to remain marginal.

This year at the EISA, LG snatched the European Green Award and they did it with the LG KM900 Arena. This could be Samsung's counterblow.

We can already tell the competition next year for that same prize will be much more heated. Samsung are slowly building up quite the arsenal - the old Samsung E200 Eco, the E1107 Crest Solar and of course, the more feature-full S7550 Blue Earth. And others are getting into it too.

We reviewed Samsung S7550 Blue Earth and we didn't mind the recycled plastic and paper. In fact, the plastic the phone was made of was on par with that of most other phones and the recycled-paper box had one of the cleverest designs we've seen - it can turn into several different things, like a photo frame or a pen stand. And the phone was a nice break from the bare-minimum eco phones that came before it.

Now, we're just waiting for the first solar powered smartphone, so all that's left to say is - gentlemen (and phone manufacturers), start your electric vehicle's engines and let's spin off!

BlackBerry Storm2 9520

2009-10-15T01:22:00.000-07:00

General	2G Network	GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900
	3G Network	HSDPA 2100
	Announced	2009, October
	Status	Coming soon. Exp. release 2009, 4Q

Size	Dimensions	112.5 x 62.2 x 14 mm
Size	Weight	160 g

Display	Type	TFT capacitive touchscreen, 65K colors
	Size	480 x 360 pixels, 3.25 inches
		- Accelerometer sensor for auto-rotate

Sound	Alert types	Vibration; MP3 ringtones
	Speakerphone	Yes
		- 3.5 mm audio jack

Memory	Phonebook	Yes, Photocall
	Call records	Yes
	Card slot	microSD (TransFlash)

Data	GPRS	Class 10 (4+1/3+2 slots), 32 - 48 kbps
	HSCSD	No
	EDGE	Class 10, 236.8 kbps
	3G	HSDPA, 7.2 Mbps; HSUPA
	WLAN	Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g
	Bluetooth	Yes, v2.1 with A2DP
	Infrared port	No
	USB	Yes, microUSB v2.0

Camera	Primary	3.15 MP, 2048x1536 pixels, autofocus, LED flash
	Features	Geo-tagging, image stabilization
	Video	Yes
	Secondary

Features	OS	BlackBerry OS
	Messaging	SMS, MMS, Email, Instant Messaging
	Browser	HTML
	Radio
	Games	Yes + downloadable
	Colors	Black
	GPS	Yes, with A-GPS support
	Java	Yes
		- BlackBerry maps - Document editor (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, PDF) - Media player MP3/WMA/AAC+ - Video player MP4/3gp/H.264/WMV - Organizer - Voice memo/dial

Battery		Standard battery, Li-Ion 1400 mAh
	Stand-by	Up to 305 h (2G) / Up to 280 h (3G)
	Talk time	Up to 5 h (2G) / Up to 6 h (3G)

LG cements low-end positions with 30 million LG KP100 sold

2009-10-14T03:04:00.001-07:00

Today LG proudly announced they've supplied more than 30 million units of their entry-level LG KP100. That number of units pushed means LG have established nice positions at the foothills of the mobile market - the entry level segment has always been a significant part of the big picture.

The KP100 was released first in India and Latin America back in January 2008 and soon after that it had spread worldwide. It has both GSM and CDMA versions. Its popularity continues to grow every month and LG released the similar KP105, KP106, KP107 and KP108 as an attempt to offer a richer variety of connectivity, design and colors. Thanks to those editions KP100 is available in three distinct designs and fifteen different colors.

Today the LG KP100 has reached the mark of 30 million units sold - 20 millions of the GSM version and 10 million of the CDMA one. The handset has been on the market almost two years now and along the penny-sized price tag it offers a compact body with only 12.6mm of thickness and a small display plus an FM radio.

This LG announcement follows those for the reaching of the one millionth mark of the KM900 Arena and the 5 millionth mark of the LG Cookies.

Well, to be honest the Nokia 1100 probably did even better for its four years of availability and still wears the crown of the world's bestselling phone with more than 200 million units. To add a little bit more perspective we'll add the 50 million RAZRs out there and 120 million PlayStation 2 consoles. And let's not forget the original Chocolate - a real break for the South Korean company with over 10 million sold around the globe.

LG definitely made a serious step to strengthen their positions into the mobile market and their handsets become more and more popular. The low-end segment is a real morsel with a huge number of potential customers. Perhaps this 30 millionth mark of the cheap KP100 may not be as impressive as the 1100 success, but it show the strengthening market positions of the LG.

Tell us what you think in the comments section - do you have one or even several of those KP100s?

Germany welcomes the GSM version of Palm Pre, now on sale

2009-10-14T03:02:00.000-07:00

After some good 8 months worth of waiting, the Palm Pre has finally landed in Europe. Welcome, it was about time. As of today you can purchase a shiny new Pre given that you live in Germany that is, and you're willing to go for O2.

Shortly after our German friends, Spain will also be having a ball, expecting the thing some time tomorrow (on O2 again). And, as we promised you last time, on 16 October the device is going to be launched in the UK.

Unfortunately, currently there are no other European launches planned but we guess it's only a matter of time for it to start spreading across Europe in a blitzkrieg.

In Germany you can have the Palm Pre GSM for 481 euro SIM-free. However if you go for a 24-month contract with O2 (Telefonica) it will cost you only 1 euro (now that's carrier subsidizing!) but you'll have to shell out 20 euro each a month during the next 2 years (which is exactly 480 euro).

The situation in the UK is a little bit different. The most affordable way to get a Pre will probably be the 18-month contract with O2. You pay 96.89 GBP for the smartphone itself and a monthly fee of 29.38 GBP. In the end of the contract you would have paid at least 625.73 GBP.

Well, it turns out that the Pre ain't gonna cost that less than an iPhone 3GS so the decision remains hard. Or maybe not? Give us your thoughts in the comments.

Sources: O2 Germany, Movistar Spain, O2 UK, O2 Ireland

Windows Mobile 6.5 review

2009-10-11T10:44:00.000-07:00

The OS is half a phone's worth and there's little wonder everyone is trying to make it the better half. In the case of Windows Mobile the emphasis really is on everyone. Version 6.5 is up and running but is it the upgrade everyone was waiting for?

The better part of the Windows Mobile 6.5 army

You don't get to see OS reviews on our homepage too often, but this is such an eagerly awaited release that we just have to see if it lives up to the hype. Windows Mobile did need a design and usability overhaul - and you don't have to trust us on that. Go check out what HTC, Samsung and SPB have been doing about it. Alright, Microsoft must've thought it's about time they did something too.

Rumors of a new WinMo release started to fly just about this time last year, but it was not until a few months later that the official confirmation was finally out. Meanwhile, the inevitable leaks were rather quick to tone down the premature enthusiasm of PocketPC buffs.

It seemed at that point that the changes introduced by the WinMo 6.5 were almost nonexistent. Well, early leaks have never been real trustworthy stuff, so as soon as there was official word from Microsoft part of the excitement started to return.

Promises of increased user-friendliness, better browsing and an app store were made and it once again seemed the 6.5 could be the thing everyone was waiting for. And those leaked screenshots were pretty neat too.

Truth be told, we were still pretty skeptical at that point but seeing manufacturers all eager to hop on the bandwagon made us hopeful again. At the time of the official release of Windows Mobile 6.5, four major manufacturers had already announced handsets that were either shipping with the new OS or eligible for a free upgrade.

We even took a couple of them for a spin already and if you have been keeping track you'd probably know what to expect from this article. The Samsung I8000 Omnia II was indeed an inspiring performer but there's no escaping the fact that a large part of its charm was in hardware (mostly the magnificent 3.7" AMOLED display and the fast CPU). From a software point of view we're more impressed with TouchWiz rather than WinMo 6.5. Sony Ericsson XPERIA X2 didn't manage to win our hearts completely but still had a trick or two up its sleeve.

So now, we're bringing the Windows Mobile out of its third-party guises and focusing on the upgrades 6.5 claims to carry. What we've seen so far tells us the massive overhaul has been postponed. But let's see if the changes are enough to buy Microsoft time to bring WinMo 7 as close to perfection as possible.

Windows Mobile 6.5 startup sceren

It is a hard enough task now that the competition is keener than ever to bite off massive chunks of the WinMo market. So, even if Windows Mobile 6.5 doesn't convert new believers it should at least be able to stand its ground against overly-ambitious newbies. Android, Symbian S60 touch, WebOS and Mac OS X are all much younger than the WinMo platform but their rapid rise must've got Redmond by surprise.

Join us on the next page to see how Microsoft are trying to respond. And is 6.5 their way to play defense or are they keen to counter-attack.

Toshiba put K01, K02 and L02 on display at CEATEC

2009-10-11T10:38:00.000-07:00

A leaked Toshiba roadmap several months back mentioned several new smart devices planned. Up until now we had no idea how they would look, but Toshiba went ahead and displayed their prototypes at the CEATEC show currently held in Japan.

Though the rumored TG02 and TG02 were not on display, the Toshiba K01 was showcased. Running on WinMo 6.5, it has the same form factor as Nokia N900 for example, with a slide-out full QWERTY keyboard. It's only 15mm thick (18mm for N900) and has a 4.1-inch WVGA capacitive display and a 3 megapixel camera. The Toshiba K01 should be announced before the end of the year.

The previously leaked Toshiba roadmap • Toshiba K01

The Toshiba K02 was also on display at the CEATEC 2009. With a detachable QWERTY keyboard, K02 is a clamshell with a main 3.5-inch resistive touchscreen display and an external secondary screen. The K02 runs on Windows Mobile 6.5 much like the K01. The Toshiba K02 should be announced in January 2010.

Toshiba K02

The last of the bunch is Toshiba L01 - a 7-inch touchscreen tablet. The display has a WVGA resolution and the operating system is again WinMo 6.5. The L01 has a detachable QWERTY keyboard (optional, but visible on the photo). The Toshiba L01 should be announced in Q4 2009.

Toshiba L01

Toshiba also went ahead and demonstrated another device that's still unnamed. It's a slider with a regular keypad but with a large touchscreen display.

Unnamed Toshiba smartphone

Just remember that all this tech information was taken from the roadmap that leaked before - Toshiba didn't release any new info today but we hope to hear more from them before the end of the year.

Today Toshiba also revealed their new wireless transfer technology dubbed TransferJet. The TransferJet technology lets you easily transfer data among different types of devices (phones, PCs, notebooks, etc.) by simply touching the two gadgets. The maximum transfer speed is surprisingly high - up to 200Mbps. Toshiba even went as far as demoing the tech live using a notebook and a modified TG01.

Toshiba representative demonstrates the TransferJet technology

Samsung B7620

2009-10-09T22:04:00.000-07:00

Introduction

Well, here's for the next phone courtesy of the joint efforts of Giorgio Armani and Samsung. Third in line, it's meant to be the perfect companion for Armani's suits and more importantly, for the executives that wear them. Let's face it, a high-street fashion label phone is all about the statement and a little less about the functionality. The Samsung B7620 Giorgio Armani phones however, delivers on both and it does that with a charm of its own.

Honestly, when we first welcomed the review sample in our office, we were a bit put off by the large size, which seemed to make the golden highlights design even louder aesthetically. However we guess that in the fashion accessories worlds, being loud is the best way to attract the much sought-after attention.

After all, the B7620 is not tacky, it's just plain golden to our taste. And as you probably remember, our fearless editors don't mind dipping their feet in stores full of gold mobiles. So here goes, our quick preview of the Samsung B7620 Giorgio Armani as we briefly took it out for a spin.

Samsung B7620 Giorgio Armani held in hand

Samsung B7620 Giorgio Armani at a glance:

General: GSM 850/900/1800/1900 MHz, UMTS 900/1900/2100 MHz, EDGE class 10, HSDPA 7.2 Mbps; HSUPA 5.76 Mbps
Form factor: Slide-and-tilt full QWERTY touch phone
Dimensions: 118.5 x 58.3 x 16.4 mm, weight 164 grams
Display: 3.5" 16M color (65K effective) resistive AMOLED touchscreen of WVGA resolution
OS: Windows Mobile 6.5, TouchWiz 2.0 UI, Work&Leisure mode switch key
Memory: 8GB built-in storage, 192 MB RAM, hot-swappable microSD (up to 16GB)
CPU: 800 MHz processor with dedicated graphics accelerator
Camera: 5 megapixel auto-focus, with dual LED flash and VGA video at 30 fps
Connectivity: Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 2.0 with A2DP, standard microUSB port, GPS receiver with A-GPS, TV out
Misc: Accelerometer for screen auto rotate and turn-to-mute, FM radio with RDS, DivX/XviD video support
Battery: 1500mAh Li-Ion battery

You can easily tell - just by looking at the Samsung B7620 Giorgio Armani model name - that's it's a really close relative to the already available Samsung B7610 OmniaPRO. Well, there are some hardware differences, of course. The new Armani phone can tilt its screen and has 8 gigs worth of internal storage, but it comes with a slightly larger footprint and doesn't have the 3.5mm audio jack of the OmniaPRO. Still, as you can see, they're almost like twin brothers.

Samsung B7620 Giorgio Armani next to Samsung B7610 OmniaPRO

But let's have a nice look of the new Armani phone by Samsung on its own, after all, it's the start of today's show.

Sony Ericsson W205

2009-10-09T22:02:00.001-07:00

General	2G Network	GSM 900 / 1800
		GSM 850 / 1900 -W205a
	Announced	2009, March
	Status	Available. Released 2009, July

Size	Dimensions	92 x 47 x 16.4 mm
Size	Weight	96 g

Display	Type	TFT, 65K colors
Display	Size	128 x 160 pixels, 1.8 inches

Sound	Alert types	Vibration; Downloadable polyphonic, MP3, AAC ringtones, composer
	Speakerphone	Yes

Memory	Phonebook	1000 contacts, Photo call
	Call records	30 received, dialed and missed calls
	Internal	5 MB
	Card slot	Memory Stick Micro (M2), up to 2GB

Data	GPRS	Class 10 (4+1/3+2 slots), 32 - 48 kbps
	HSCSD	No
	EDGE	Class 10, 236.8 kbps
	3G	No
	WLAN	No
	Bluetooth	Yes, v2.0
	Infrared port	No
	USB	Yes, v2.0

Camera	Primary	1.3 MP, 1280 x 1024 pixels
	Video	Yes
	Secondary	No

Features	Messaging	SMS, MMS
	Browser	WAP 2.0/HTML (Opera Mini)
	Radio	Stereo FM radio with RDS
	Games	Yes + downloadable
	Colors	Ambient Black, Sakura Pink, Windy Blue
	GPS	No
	Java	Yes, MIDP 2.0
		- Walkman media player - TrackID music recognition - T9 - Organizer - Voice memo

Battery		Standard battery
	Stand-by	Up to 425 h
	Talk time	Up to 9h
	Music play	Up to 13 h 30 min

Sony Ericsson C901

2009-10-09T22:00:00.000-07:00

General	2G Network	GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900
	3G Network	HSDPA 900 / 2100
	Announced	2009, May
	Status	Available. Released 2009, July

Size	Dimensions	105 x 45 x 13 mm
Size	Weight	107 g

Display	Type	TFT, 256K colors
	Size	240 x 320 pixels, 2.2 inches
		- Accelerometer sensor

Sound	Alert types	Vibration; Downloadable polyphonic, MP3, AAC ringtones
	Speakerphone	Yes

Memory	Phonebook	1000 x 20 fields, Photo call
	Call records	30 received, dialed and missed calls
	Internal	120 MB
	Card slot	Memory Stick Micro (M2), up to 8GB

Data	GPRS	Class 10 (4+1/3+2 slots), 32 - 48 kbps
	HSCSD	Yes
	EDGE	Class 10, 236.8 kbps
	3G	HSDPA, 3.6 Mbps
	WLAN	No
	Bluetooth	Yes, v2.0 with A2DP
	Infrared port	No
	USB	Yes, v2.0

Camera	Primary	5 MP, 2592 x 1944 pixels, autofocus, xenon flash, LED flash
	Features	Geo-tagging (cell-ID), face, smile detection, smart contrast, red-eye reduction
	Video	Yes; video light
	Secondary	No

Features	Messaging	SMS (threaded view), MMS, Email, Push Email, IM
	Browser	WAP 2.0/HTML (NetFront), RSS reader
	Radio	Stereo FM radio with RDS
	Games	Yes, incl. motion-based + downloadable
	Colors	Ocean White
	GPS	No
	Java	Yes, MIDP 2.0
		- Google maps - MP3/eAAC+/WMA player - MP4/WMV/H.263 player - TrackID - Picture editor/blogging - YouTube application - Organizer - Voice memo/dial - T9 - E-manual - Eco friendly materials - Walkmate, CO2 Calculator

Battery		Standard battery, Li-Po 950 mAh (BST-33)
	Stand-by	Up to 430 h
	Talk time	Up to 9 h 30 min

Misc	Price group

Sony Ericsson C901

2009-10-08T05:29:00.001-07:00

Introduction

At first, you might think that the Sony Ericsson C901 is just another 5-megapixel cameraphone. Well, that’s not terribly exciting in the current market bustling with 8-megapixel snappers, and probing the boundaries at 12. But you’d be wrong. Be it for the simple reason that the C901 is one of the few handsets out there sporting a Xenon flash. And the one on the C901 is special enough to help it stand above the crowd of cameraphones.

Another thing to note is the eco-friendly GreenHeart version which is interestingly enough, is the only flair or C901 that can currently be found on the Sony Ericsson website.

The C901 GreenHeart is trendy for being partially made of recycled materials (though, technically both devices are identical). You can find out more about it here.

Sony Ericsson C901 official photos

Even after reading those lines many would say there is nothing so special about the C901, particularly as it’s not even selling worldwide! Well, we‘ve been inundated with requests that we review it and there’s nothing we like doing more than pleasing our loyal readers.

Key features

Xenon and LED flash equipped 5-megapixel cameraphone
Lots of dedicated camera controls
Active camera cover
Quad-band GSM support
3G with HSDPA 3.6 Mbps
2.2" 256K-color display of QVGA resolution
Accelerometer for screen auto-rotation
110 MB of internal memory, M2 expansion (up to 8GB)
Bluetooth v2.0 with A2DP
Stereo FM radio with RDS
Motion-based games
Multi-tasking and task manager
Smart dialing

Main disadvantages

Video recording maxes out at QVGA@30fps
No document viewer
Memory card slot under the battery cover
No video calls
Disappointing retail package contents

Sony Ericsson C901 live shots

The Sony Ericsson C901 is a great value in terms of image quality. Looking at the pictures we took with it makes us nostalgic for the time when Sony Ericsson camerphones set the pace and the others just followed.

Aside from the remarkable imaging though, the C901 is just an ordinary feature phone. And that isn’t a bad thing, since it does its job just fine. Very little to complain about, but at the same time not a huge list of features to get excited about either.

Anyhow, it’s about time we opened the box and started the review, don’t you think? Head for the next page to see what we found in the box and what we thought of the Sony Ericsson C901 design and construction.

More Samsung I5700 Spica pics and details leaked today

2009-10-08T05:28:00.000-07:00

More details about Samsung I5700 Spica, previously known as Galaxy Lite, leaked online today. The Android-powered smartphone should be announced next month with a price of 350 euro, which is quite higher than what we would consider a budget smartphone price.

As we informed you before, the official name of the Samsung I5700 Galaxy Lite is going to be Spica. It will sport a capacitive touchscreen, 3.2 megapixel camera, all-round connectivity package (HSDPA, Wi-Fi, GPS and Bluetooth) and a microSD card slot. The CPU is expected to be the same 800 MHz one as in the Omnia II, a lot faster than the original 528 MHz Galaxy processor.

Samsung I5700 Spica

The Spica will run on Android 1.5, but it won't have any UI modifications TouchWiz-style.

The Samsung Spica is rumored to cost 350 euro and should become available some time in November. There is no official announcement and information yet.

HTC HD2

2009-10-08T05:27:00.003-07:00

General	2G Network	GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900
	3G Network	HSDPA 900 / 2100
	Announced	2009, October
	Status	Coming soon. Exp. release 2009, November

Size	Dimensions	120.5 x 67 x 11 mm
Size	Weight	157 g

Display	Type	TFT capacitive touchscreen, 65K colors
	Size	480 x 800 pixels, 4.3 inches
		- Sense UI - Multi-touch input method - Accelerometer sensor for auto-rotate - Proximity sensor for auto turn-off - Ambient light sensor - Pick-to-mute a call

Sound	Alert types	Vibration; Downloadable polyphonic, MP3, WAV, WMA ringtones
	Speakerphone	Yes
		- 3.5 mm audio jack

Memory	Phonebook	Practically unlimited entries and fields, Photocall
	Call records	Practically unlimited
	Internal	448 MB RAM, 512 MB ROM
	Card slot	microSD (TransFlash)

Data	GPRS	Class 12 (4+1/3+2/2+3/1+4 slots), 32 - 48 kbps
	HSCSD	Yes
	EDGE	Class 12
	3G	HSDPA, 7.2 Mbps; HSUPA, 2 Mbps
	WLAN	Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g, Wi-Fi router
	Bluetooth	Yes, v2.1 with A2DP
	Infrared port	No
	USB	Yes, miniUSB

Camera	Primary	5 MP, 2592 x 1944 pixels, autofocus, LED flash
	Features	Geo-tagging
	Video	Yes
	Secondary	No

Features	OS	Microsoft Windows Mobile 6.5 Professional
	CPU	Qualcomm Snapdragon QSD2850 1 GHz processor
	Messaging	SMS (threaded view), MMS, Email, Instant Messaging
	Browser	WAP 2.0/xHTML, HTML
	Radio	Stereo FM radio with RDS
	Games	Yes
	Colors	Black
	GPS	Yes, with A-GPS support; NaviPanel
	Java	Yes, MIDP 2.0
		- Digital compass - MP3/WAV/WMA/eAAC+ player - AVI(DiVX/XviD)/MP4/WMV/H.264/H.263 player - Facebook and Twitter integration - YouTube client - Pocket Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote, PDF viewer) - HTC Peep, HTC Footprints - Voice memo - T9

Battery		Standard battery, Li-Ion 1230 mAh
	Stand-by	Up to 490 h (2G) / Up to 390 h (3G)
	Talk time	Up to 6 h 20 min (2G) / Up to 5 h 40 min (3G)
	Music play	Up to 12 h

Misc	Price group

Acer neoTouch S200

2009-10-08T05:26:00.001-07:00

General	2G Network	GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900
	3G Network	HSDPA 900 / 1900 / 2100
	Announced	2009, October
	Status	Available. Released 2009, October

Size	Dimensions	118.6 x 63 x 12 mm
Size	Weight	130 g

Display	Type	TFT resistive touchscreen, 65K colors
	Size	480 x 800 pixels, 3.8 inches
		- Accelerometer sensor for auto-rotate - Proximity sensor for auto turn-off - Ambient light sensor

Sound	Alert types	Vibration; Downloadable polyphonic, MP3, WAV ringtones
	Speakerphone	Yes
		- 3.5mm audio jack

Memory	Phonebook	Practically unlimited entries and fields, Photocall
	Call records	Practically unlimited
	Internal	256MB RAM, 512MB ROM
	Card slot	microSD (TransFlash) up to 32GB, buy memory

Data	GPRS	Class 10 (4+1/3+2 slots), 32 - 48 kbps
	HSCSD	No
	EDGE	Class 10, 236.8 kbps
	3G	HSDPA, 7.2 Mbps; HSUPA, 5.76 Mbps
	WLAN	Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g
	Bluetooth	Yes, v2.1 with A2DP
	Infrared port	No
	USB	Yes, miniUSB

Camera	Primary	5 MP, 2560х1920 pixels, autofocus, LED flash
	Features	Geo-tagging
	Video	Yes
	Secondary

Features	OS	Microsoft Windows Mobile 6.5 Professional
	CPU	Qualcomm Snapdragon QSD2850 1 GHz processor
	Messaging	SMS (threaded view), MMS, Email, Instant Messaging
	Browser	HTML
	Radio	No
	Games	Yes
	Colors	Black
	GPS	Yes, with A-GPS support
	Java	Yes, MIDP 2.0
		- MP3/WAV/WMA/eAAC+ player - MP4/WMV/H.264/H.263 player - Facebook and Flikr integration - Pocket Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote, PDF viewer) - Voice memo - T9

Battery		Standard battery, Li-Ion 1350 mAh
	Stand-by	Up to 400 h
	Talk time	Up to 5 h

Misc	Price group

HTC Pure

2009-10-08T05:25:00.001-07:00

General	2G Network	GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900
	3G Network	HSDPA 850 / 1900 / 2100
	Announced	2009, October
	Status	Available. Released 2009, October

Size	Dimensions	-
Size	Weight	-

Display	Type	TFT resistive touchscreen, 65K colors
	Size	480 x 800 pixels, 3.2 inches
		- TouchFLO 3D finger swipe navigation - Accelerometer sensor for auto-rotate - Touch-sensitive zoom bar - Handwriting recognition

Sound	Alert types	Vibration; Downloadable polyphonic, MP3, WAV ringtones
	Speakerphone	Yes

Memory	Phonebook	Practically unlimited entries and fields, Photocall
	Call records	Practically unlimited
	Internal	288 MB RAM, 512 MB ROM
	Card slot	microSD (TransFlash), buy memory

Data	GPRS	Class 10 (4+1/3+2 slots), 32 - 48 kbps
	HSCSD	No
	EDGE	Class 10, 236.8 kbps
	3G	HSDPA, 7.2 Mbps; HSUPA, 2 Mbps
	WLAN	Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g
	Bluetooth	Yes, v2.0 with A2DP
	Infrared port	No
	USB	Yes, miniUSB

Camera	Primary	5 MP, 2592 x 1944 pixels, autofocus
	Features	Touch focus
	Video	Yes, VGA@15fps
	Secondary	VGA videocall camera

Features	OS	Microsoft Windows Mobile 6.5 Professional
	CPU	Qualcomm MSM7200A 528 MHz processor
	Messaging	SMS (threaded view), MMS, Email, Instant Messaging
	Browser	HTML
	Radio	Stereo FM radio with RDS
	Games	Yes, incl. motion-based + downloadable
	Colors	Black
	GPS	Yes, with A-GPS support
	Java	Yes, MIDP 2.0
		- Pocket Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote, PDF viewer) - Voice memo - MP3 player

Battery		Standard battery, Li-Ion 1100 mAh
	Stand-by	-
	Talk time	-

Samsung T939 Behold 2

2009-10-08T05:24:00.001-07:00

General	2G Network	GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900
	3G Network	HSDPA 900 / 2100 / 1700
	Announced	2009, October
	Status	Coming soon. 2009, November

Size	Dimensions	-
Size	Weight	-

Display	Type	AMOLED capacitive touchscreen, 16M colors
	Size	320 x 480 pixels, 3.2 inches
		- Accelerometer sensor for auto-rotate

Sound	Alert types	Vibration; MP3, WAV ringtones
	Speakerphone	Yes
		- 3.5 mm audio jack

Memory	Phonebook	Practically unlimited entries and fields, Photo call
	Call records	Practically unlimited
	Card slot	microSD (TransFlash), up to 16 GB

Data	GPRS	Class 10 (4+1/3+2 slots), 32 - 48 kbps
	HSCSD	Yes
	EDGE	Class 10, 236.8 kbps
	3G	HSDPA
	WLAN	Yes, Wi-Fi 802.11b/g
	Bluetooth	Yes, v2.1 with A2DP
	Infrared port	No
	USB	Yes, v2.0

Camera	Primary	5 MP, 2592х1944 pixels, autofocus, LED flash
	Features	Geo-tagging
	Video	Yes
	Secondary	No

Features	OS	Android OS, v1.5 (Cupcake)
	Messaging	SMS, EMS, MMS, Email
	Browser	HTML
	Radio
	Games	Yes
	Colors	Black
	GPS	A-GPS only
	Java
		- MP4/ H.263/ H.264/ WMV player - MP3/ e-AAC+/ WMA/ player - Google Search, Maps, Gmail, YouTube, Calendar, Google Talk integration - Voice memo

Battery		Standard battery, Li-Ion
	Stand-by	-
	Talk time	-

LG GD510

2009-10-08T05:20:00.000-07:00

General	2G Network	GSM 900 / 1800 / 1900
	3G Network	UMTS 2100
	Announced	2009, September
	Status	Coming soon. Exp. release 2009, October

Size	Dimensions	-
Size	Weight	-

Display	Type	TFT touchscreen, 256K colors
	Size	240 x 400 pixels, 3.0 inches
		- Multi-functional home key

Sound	Alert types	Vibration; Downloadable polyphonic, MP3 ringtones
	Speakerphone	Yes

Memory	Phonebook	1000 entries, Photocall
	Call records	20 dialed, 20 received, 20 missed calls
	Internal	42 MB
	Card slot	microSD (TransFlash) up to 8GB

Data	GPRS	Class 10 (4+1/3+2 slots), 32 - 48 kbps
	HSCSD	Yes
	EDGE	Class 10, 236.8 kbps
	3G	Yes, 384 kbps
	WLAN	No
	Bluetooth	Yes, v2.0 with A2DP
	Infrared port	No
	USB	Yes, microUSB

Camera	Primary	3.15 MP, 2048x1536 pixels
	Video	Yes
	Secondary	No

Features	Messaging	SMS, MMS, Email
	Browser	WAP 2.0/xHTML, HTML
	Radio	Stereo FM radio with RDS
	Games	Yes
	Colors	Silver
	GPS	No
	Java	Yes, MIDP 2.0
		- MP4/H.263/H.264 player - MP3/WAV/eAAC+ player - Organizer - Voice memo - T9 - Optional solar panel

Battery		Standard battery, Li-Ion
	Stand-by	-
	Talk time	-

Current Ranking

2009-10-03T06:43:00.000-07:00

Current rankings

By rate
	Phones	Rate	Votes
1.	Sony Ericsson XPERIA X1	8.615	107,424
2.	Nokia 5800 XpressMusic	8.549	60,894
3.	Nokia N82	8.547	72,210
4.	Samsung i8510 INNOV8	8.531	35,685
5.	Samsung i8910 Omnia HD	8.527	22,317
6.	Nokia E55	8.527	12,753
7.	Motorola A3100	8.526	6,440
8.	HTC Touch HD	8.511	19,517
9.	HTC Touch Pro	8.507	10,777
10.	Motorola ZN5	8.507	9,963
11.	Nokia N85	8.495	17,598
12.	Sony Ericsson W995	8.492	20,916
13.	HTC Hero	8.482	4,150
14.	Samsung S8000 Jet	8.474	4,162
15.	Samsung I8000 Omnia II	8.473	4,792

	Brands	Rate	Votes
1.	HTC	8.247	136,169
2.	Palm	8.228	30,303
3.	Sony Ericsson	8.168	1,183,518
4.	Samsung	8.052	706,777
5.	Acer	8.032	2,249
6.	Philips	8.014	41,536
7.	Nokia	8.004	1,862,745

By interest
	Phones	Hits
1.	Nokia 5800 XpressMusic	7,120,511
2.	Sony Ericsson XPERIA X1	6,861,789
3.	Nokia N96	6,661,344
4.	Nokia N97	6,382,098
5.	Nokia N95 8GB	5,760,003
6.	Sony Ericsson K850	5,606,783
7.	Nokia N82	5,333,598
8.	Nokia 5310 XpressMusic	5,271,013
9.	Nokia E71	5,003,958
10.	Samsung i900 Omnia	4,949,690
11.	Sony Ericsson W960	4,516,967
12.	Apple iPhone 3G	4,470,006
13.	Nokia 6500 slide	4,443,251
14.	Sony Ericsson W910	4,361,677
15.	Nokia E51	4,048,358

	Brands	Hits
1.	Nokia	543,374,453
2.	Sony Ericsson	302,917,278
3.	Samsung	251,006,375
4.	Motorola	143,555,464
5.	LG	89,177,202
6.	HTC	51,179,005
7.	Siemens	33,806,840

* Info pages are: phones specification pages, product list, reviews and news pages

Nokia 6600i slide

2009-10-03T06:32:00.000-07:00

Introduction

A while back Nokia released the 6600 pair - the slide and the fold - which we fell for, big time. The seemingly more popular sibling got an update and the 6600i slide will keep on cashing in. Slightly revamped, it brings a beefier camera and a new paintjob to boot.

Looks have changed just a bit and we honestly think they did it right. The consciously minimalist design of the original didn't leave much room for frills anyway. Alright, the 6600i slide is a no-frills package overall, but don't go saying we didn't warn you. It's enjoyable and addictive.

Nokia 6600i slide

Key features:

Quad-band GSM/GPRS/EDGE support, dual-band UMTS
2.2" 16M-color QVGA display
5 megapixel camera, autofocus and LED flash
VGA video recording at 15fps
S40 user interface, 5th edition
Bluetooth (with A2DP)
Stereo FM radio with RDS
microSD card slot (up to 16 GB), 1GB included
Ovi Maps for S40 come preinstalled
Ovi Contacts, Share on Ovi, YouTube, MySpace and Facebook applications preinstalled
Really compact and extra smooth metal body
Sweet oval shapes and neat slider design
Accelerometer for tap-for-time and tap-to-mute

Main disadvantages:

No HSDPA
Display brightness is quite low
Poor browser and no Opera Mini preinstalled
Memory card slot under the battery, no hot-swap
No dedicated shutter key
Below par camera quality
No 3.5 mm audio jack or a two-piece headset in the box
No smart dialing
No multi-tasking, especially uncomfortable in Ovi Contacts and the social networking applications
No office document viewer
Loudspeaker loudness is only marginally improved

No need to tell you, the "i" in any Nokia model designation is there to save face. It's like Nokia saying: here's a phone that sells big, so be our guest - keep on buying it. It's more of a relaunch than an update. And we're not pointing fingers here - if you have a massive seller the first thing on your mind would be to keep it rolling.

Just remember the 6300 - it did wonders for the Finns, so the 6300i followed in due course. Yes, it added Wi-Fi to its predecessor's feature set but that can really be seen as an exception and was meant for select markets only. And by the way, Nokia might have a point. The 3G-enabled 6600 slide can do without WLAN and a better camera will perhaps serve its market better.

Anyway, "i" models are incremental updates - they build on the previous device rather than turn it into something completely new. In that sense, the last people to be viewed as potential customers are current 6600 slide owners. If we were to upgrade from Nokia 6600 slide, we'd probably be considering Symbian - or maybe an all-in-one feature phone like the 6260 slide.

Accordingly, the real job of the 6600i slide is to pick up the customers the original missed and serve the Nokia midrange more in keeping with the time.

Neat and friendly is the name of the game

We've made it safely to the first jump, so you get ready to head to the next page, while we bring up the Nokia 6600i slide retail box and prepare to look inside.

The million dollar review: Going window-shopping

2009-10-03T06:31:00.000-07:00

Introduction

This site is usually all about the features and performance, but not today. It's our day-off so we decided to go shopping. Well, window-shopping to be more depressingly precise. And the only bags we brought home are those under our eyes. Sometimes glitter is indeed gold - or better - and it sure can blind.

We may've seen it all: from basic phones that scratch a living out of calling and texting to technological triumphs. And they all used to make sense. Today's a challenge for our sense of right and wrong. What we are looking at are some outrageously expensive handsets for the uber rich who have more money than...ok, let's face it... us.

Some of the participants

If you find insanely overpriced featureless handsets a complete waste of time and human effort you better stop reading right now. But if you recognize the limited-edition handcrafted diamond-encrusted models as a form of artistic expression then you might be informed and entertained. Oh, and feel free to be shocked. Even our hardened geek hearts couldn't help but skip a beat when we handled those 40,000 dollar pieces.

No one buys these handsets for their functionality, user-friendly interface or great reception. In fact, no one buys these handsets is where every right-thinking person would've stopped. But no sir, these things do sell, be it with just one purpose: to flaunt just how much you have. By the way, a certain group of users may find this review particularly upsetting. Nokia Arte, Motorola Aura or Samsung Ego owners seem to like feeling superior to the rest of the crowd, but they are going to look like poverty-stricken cheapskates next to the heavy hitters we are about to review.

The phones in this review are all of the love-it-or-hate it type. None of these could ever be called a sensible purchase, but the surprising number of boutique handsets available does suggest there is demand, even in these economically tough times. So who are we to judge if the money could be better spent elsewhere when the users end up happy and wanting more?

As a small aside, we would like to make the case that every reviewer should get to keep the handsets they test. How about that? Looking back at all the top notch phones we've had to give back over the years sure hurts. Alright, we never really made fuss about it until now but we're off to a trade union meeting as soon as we finish this article. And this time we mean it because this time it's different.

What we have here is a bunch of Vertu phones, a couple of diamond-encrusted Goldvish handsets and a bonus track - TAG Heuer's Meridiist. This last one with its tongue-twisting name doesn't even come close to the grandeur of its companions, nor has it been so aggressively marketed. But the underdog quickly became the favorite around the office. And the paltry 5000 US dollars on its price tag almost had us ready to torture-test it. No offence meant, out of the whole bunch the Swiss chap sure was our kind of stuff.

A bunch of Vertu handsets captured in the wild

On second thoughts, if you have to ask about the price, then you probably can't afford it anyway, so it's probably best that we put away our wallets and focus on the job in hand. There are quite a lot of handsets waiting and the patience of the nobility shouldn't be tested. The review begins on the next page with one of the Vertu offerings.

Nokia 6350

2009-10-03T06:30:00.001-07:00

General	2G Network	GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900
	3G Network	HSDPA 850 / 1900 / 2100
	Announced	2009, October
	Status	Available. Released 2009, October

Size	Dimensions	93.2 x 47.2 x 17.2 mm, 61.3 cc
Size	Weight	102.3 g

Display	Type	TFT, 16M colors
	Size	240 x 320 pixels, 2.0 inches
		- Second external TFT display, (128 x 160 pixels), 1.36 inches - Dedicated music keys

Sound	Alert types	Vibration; Downloadable polyphonic, MP3 ringtones
	Speakerphone	Yes
		- 2.5mm audio jack

Memory	Phonebook	1000 entries, Photocall
	Call records	30 received, dialed and missed calls
	Internal	52 MB storage
	Card slot	microSD (TransFlash), up to 16GB, buy memory

Data	GPRS	Class 10 (4+1/3+2 slots), 32 - 48 kbps
	HSCSD	Yes
	EDGE	Class 10, 236.8 kbps
	3G	HSDPA
	WLAN	No
	Bluetooth	Yes, v2.1 with A2DP
	Infrared port	No
	USB	Yes, v2.0 microUSB

Camera	Primary	2 MP, 1600x1200 pixels
	Video	Yes, VGA@15fps
	Secondary	No

Features	Messaging	SMS, MMS, Email, IM
	Browser	WAP 2.0/xHTML, HTML
	Radio	No
	Games	Yes
	Colors	Red, Graphite
	GPS	A-GPS only; AT&T Navigator
	Java	Yes, MIDP 2.0
		- MP3/WAV/eAAC+ player - MP4/H.263/H.264 player - Organizer - Voice memo/dial - T9

Battery		Standard battery, Li-Ion 1050 mAh (BL-6MT)
	Stand-by	Up to 350 h (2G) / Up to 350 h (3G)
	Talk time	Up to 4 h (2G) / Up to 4 h 20 min (3G)

Motorola Motocubo A45

2009-10-03T06:28:00.001-07:00

General	2G Network	GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900
	Announced	2009, October
	Status	Available. Released 2009, October

Size	Dimensions	82 x 61.5 x 16.6 mm
Size	Weight	110 g

Display	Type	TFT, 256K colors
	Size	320 x 240 pixels, 2.5 inches
		- Full QWERTY keyboard

Sound	Alert types	Vibration; Downloadable polyphonic, MP3 ringtones
	Speakerphone	Yes
		- 3.5mm audio jack

Memory	Phonebook	1500 entries, Photocall
	Call records	20 dialed, 20 received, 20 missed calls
	Internal	32 MB
	Card slot	microSD (TransFlash), up to 32GB , 2GB card included, buy memory

Data	GPRS	Class 10 (4+1/3+2 slots), 32 - 48 kbps
	HSCSD	Yes
	EDGE	Class 10, 236.8 kbps
	3G	No
	WLAN	No
	Bluetooth	Yes, v2.0 with A2DP
	Infrared port	No
	USB	Yes, microUSB v2.0

Camera	Primary	2 MP, 1600x1200 pixels
	Video	Yes, 15-20fps
	Secondary	No

Features	Messaging	SMS, MMS, Email
	Browser	WAP 2.0/xHTML, HTML
	Radio	Stereo FM radio with RDS; FM recording
	Games	Yes
	Colors	White
	GPS	No
	Java	Yes, MIDP 2.0
		- MP3/WAV/eAAC+ player - MP4/H.263 player - Organizer - Voice memo/dial - T9

Battery		Standard battery, Li-Ion 930 mAh (BN60)
	Stand-by	Up to 350 h
	Talk time	Up to 8 h 30 min

Misc	Price group

Samsung W880 AMOLED 12M

2009-10-02T06:35:00.000-07:00

Introduction

The Samsung W880 ups the ante with a world's first 12 megapixel camera with 3x optical zoom. Featuring a hardware Mode dial and a real zoom lever it does feel like a real camera and you may find yourself struggling to find the mobile phone under the digicam skin. Now while W880 is South Korea bound only, it's enough to give us a taste of what's coming in the shape of the rumored Samsung M8920, which should make it our way sometime next year - but with Wi-Fi and GPS on board.

Samsung SCH-W880 AMOLED 12M official photos

Designing a mobile phone (or any other portable gadget for that matter) is a balancing act - the engineers must juggle between cost, size and features, all the while being limited by the current state of technology.

Say cost doesn't matter - that still leaves only so much that can reasonably be crammed into a mobile device. Progress is made, technology advances, which results in things getting cheaper, smaller and with more features. And quite soon, things that seemed impractical a few years back can now be released as a consumer device.

This is how the Samsung W880 AMOLED 12M came to be - it contains all the mechanical elements of a point-and-shoot camera, but still has enough room left for the phone parts. It's not the first phone to achieve that but it's the first 12-megapixel one and the added 3x optical zoom and xenon flash pretty much put it on par with a typical point-and-shoot camera.

The Samsung W880 has some high-end imaging functions too - tracking touch autofocus, 720p@30 fps video recording, 3.3" big AMOLED capacitive touchscreen with WVGA resolution. That's not something you see every day on a cameras and it's top notch in mobile phone terms. Even the degree of control over how a photo is taken beats out consumer cameras, let alone cameraphones.

Now, keep in mind that the we're previewing a prototype here and it's a prototype of a phone meant for the South Korean market only and although it has tri-band GSM and support for UMTS, those are meant for roaming only - the AMOLED 12M is for South Korea and South Korea only.

So, why bother with a preview then? Well, there's a global version coming in the beginning of next year and that might actually land in a store near you. It will look just the same but will drop the T-DMB TV receiver, which has little use outside of South Korea anyway, swapping it for the more practical Wi-Fi and GPS. Supposedly, the global GSM version will be allegedly called Samsung M8920, but that has yet to be confirmed by an official source.

Samsung W880 AMOLED 12M live shots

In this preview we focus mainly on the camera - admit it, it's the most interesting aspect of the Samsung W880 and it's the camera that has us holding our breaths.

For now, we'll just concentrate on the essentials - we take a look at the hardware, next we have a video walkthrough of the interface and finally, we focus on the camera, with plenty of still photos and video samples.

Samsung W880 AMOLED 12M

2009-09-29T08:00:00.001-07:00

General	2G Network	GSM 900 / 1800 / 1900
		CDMA2000 800 / 1700
	3G Network	UMTS 2100
		1xEV-DO 800 / 1700
	Announced	2009, September
	Status	Coming soon. Exp. release 2009, October

Size	Dimensions	115.8 x 56.9 x 16.3 mm
Size	Weight	-

Display	Type	AMOLED capacitive touchscreen, 16M colors
	Size	480 x 800 pixels, 3.3 inches
		- TouchWiz v2.0 UI - Accelerometer sensor for auto-rotate - Proximity sensor for auto turn-off

Sound	Alert types	Vibration; Downloadable polyphonic, MP3, WAV ringtones
	Speakerphone	Yes

Memory	Phonebook	Yes, Photo call
	Call records	Yes
	Internal	4GB
	Card slot	microSD (TransFlash), up to 32GB

Data	GPRS	Class 12 (4+1/3+2/2+3/1+4 slots), 32 - 48 kbps
	HSCSD	Yes
	EDGE	Class 12
	3G	CDMA2000 1xEV-DO
	WLAN	No
	Bluetooth	Yes, v2.0 with A2DP
	Infrared port	No
	USB	Yes, v2.0

Camera	Primary	12 MP, 4000 x 3000 pixels, 3x optical zoom, autofocus, xenon flash, LED flash
	Features	Mode dial, variable apperture, tracking touch autofocus, face, smile and blink detection, Smart Auto mode, image stabilization, Beauty Shot
	Video	Yes, 720p@30fps
	Secondary	Videocall camera

Features	Messaging	SMS, MMS, Email, IM, Push Email
	Browser	WAP 2.0/xHTML, HTML
	Radio	No
	Games	Yes + downloadable
	Colors	Black
	GPS	No
	Java	Yes, MIDP 2.0
		- T-DMB TV receiver - MP3/WMA/AAC/WAV player - DivX/XviD/H.263/H.264/MP4/WMV player - Organizer - Voice memo - T9

Battery		Standard battery, Li-Ion 1100 mAh
	Stand-by	-
	Talk time	-

Nokia N900

2009-09-29T07:58:00.001-07:00

General	2G Network	GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900
	3G Network	HSDPA 1700 / 2100 / 900
	Announced	2009, August
	Status	Coming soon. Exp. release 2009, October

Size	Dimensions	110.9 x 59.8 x 18 mm, 113 cc
Size	Weight	181 g

Display	Type	TFT resistive touchscreen, 16M colors
	Size	800 x 480 pixels, 3.5 inches
		- Proximity sensor for auto turn-off - Accelerometer sensor for auto-rotate - Full QWERTY keyboard

Sound	Alert types	Vibration; MP3 ringtones
	Speakerphone	Yes, with stereo speakers
		- 3.5 mm audio jack

Memory	Phonebook	Practically unlimited entries and fields, Photocall
	Call records	Detailed, max 30 days
	Internal	32 GB storage, 256 MB RAM
	Card slot	microSD (TransFlash), up to 16GB

Data	GPRS	Class 32
	HSCSD	Yes
	EDGE	Class 32
	3G	HSDPA, 10Mbps; HSUPA, 2Mbps
	WLAN	Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g, DLNA
	Bluetooth	Yes, v2.1 with A2DP
	Infrared port	Yes
	USB	Yes, v2.0 microUSB

Camera	Primary	5 MP, 2592x1944 pixels, Carl Zeiss optics, autofocus, Dual LED flash, video light
	Features	Geo-tagging
	Video	Yes, WVGA(848 x 480)@25fps
	Secondary	Yes, VGA

Features	OS	Maemo 5
	CPU	ARM Cortex A8 600 MHz, PowerVR SGX graphics
	Messaging	SMS (threaded view), Email, Push Email, IM
	Browser	WAP 2.0/xHTML, HTML, RSS feeds
	Radio	Stereo FM radio (via third party software); FM transmitter
	Games	Yes, Bounce, Chess, Mahjong + downloadable
	Colors	Black
	GPS	Yes, with A-GPS support; Ovi Maps
	Java	Yes, MIDP 2.1
		- Digital compass - MP3/WMA/WAV/eAAC+ music player - WMV/RealVideo/MP4/AVI/XviD video player - TV-out - Voice command/dial - Document viewer (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, PDF) - Photo editor - T9

Battery		Standard battery, Li-Ion 1320 mAh (BL-5J)
	Stand-by
	Talk time

Nokia 5800 Navigation

2009-09-29T07:56:00.002-07:00

General	2G Network	GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900
	3G Network	HSDPA 900 / 2100
		HSDPA 850 / 1900 - American version
	Announced	2009, August
	Status	Coming soon. Exp. release 2009, 3Q

Size	Dimensions	111 x 51.7 x 15.5 mm, 83 cc
Size	Weight	109 g

Display	Type	TFT resistive touchscreen, 16M colors
	Size	360 x 640 pixels, 3.2 inches
		- Proximity sensor for auto turn-off - Accelerometer sensor for auto-rotate - Handwriting recognition

Sound	Alert types	Vibration; Downloadable polyphonic, MP3 ringtones
	Speakerphone	Yes, with stereo speakers
		- 3.5 mm audio jack

Memory	Phonebook	Practically unlimited entries and fields, Photocall
	Call records	Detailed, max 30 days
	Internal	81 MB storage, 128 MB RAM
	Card slot	microSD (TransFlash), up to 16GB, 8GB included

Data	GPRS	Class 32
	HSCSD	Yes
	EDGE	Class 32
	3G	HSDPA, 3.6 Mbps
	WLAN	Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g, UPnP technology
	Bluetooth	Yes, v2.0 with A2DP
	Infrared port	No
	USB	Yes, v2.0 microUSB

Camera	Primary	3.15 MP, 2048x1536 pixels, Carl Zeiss optics, autofocus, LED flash
	Video	Yes, VGA 30fps
	Secondary	Videocall camera

Features	OS	Symbian OS v9.4, Series 60 rel. 5
	CPU	ARM 11 434 MHz processor
	Messaging	SMS, MMS, Email, Instant Messaging
	Browser	WAP 2.0/xHTML, HTML, RSS feeds
	Radio	Stereo FM radio with RDS
	Games	Yes + Java downloadable
	Colors	Chrome, Black
	GPS	Yes, with A-GPS support; Nokia Maps 2.0 Touch
	Java	Yes, MIDP 2.0
		- Regional maps - Lifetime pedestrian and vehicle voice-guided navigation licenses - Car mount and car charger in retail package - WMV/RV/MP4/3GP video player - MP3/WMA/WAV/RA/AAC/M4A music player - TV-out - Voice command/dial - Document viewer (Word, Excel, PowerPoint) - T9 - Photo editor

Battery		Standard battery, Li-Ion 1320 mAh(BL-5J)
	Stand-by	Up to 408 h (2G) / Up to 408 h (3G)
	Talk time	Up to 9 h (2G) / Up to 5 h (3G)
	Music play	Up to 35 h

Misc	Price group

Nokia 6600i slide

2009-09-29T07:56:00.001-07:00

General	2G Network	GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900
	3G Network	UMTS 850 / 2100
	Announced	2009, May
	Status	Available. Released 2009, July

Size	Dimensions	93 x 45 x 14 mm, 52 cc
Size	Weight	110 g

Display	Type	TFT, 16M colors
	Size	240 x 320 pixels, 2.2 inches
		- Accelerometer

Sound	Alert types	Vibration; Downloadable polyphonic, MP3 ringtones
	Speakerphone	Yes

Memory	Phonebook	Yes, up to 1000 entries, Photocall
	Call records	Yes
	Internal	20 MB
	Card slot	microSD (TransFlash), up to 16GB, 1GB included, buy memory

Data	GPRS	Class 32, 88 kbps
	HSCSD	Yes
	EDGE	Class 32, 296 kbits
	3G	Yes, 384 kbps
	WLAN	No
	Bluetooth	Yes, v2.0 with A2DP
	Infrared port	No
	USB	Yes, v2.0 microUSB

Camera	Primary	5 MP, 2592x1944 pixels, autofocus, dual-LED flash
	Video	Yes, VGA@15fps
	Secondary	Yes, VGA

Features	Messaging	SMS, MMS, Email, Instant Messaging
	Browser	WAP 2.0/xHTML, HTML (Opera mini)
	Radio	Stereo FM radio with RDS
	Games	Yes
	Colors	Black, Silver
	GPS	No
	Java	Yes, MIDP 2.0
		- MP3/eAAC+/WMA player - MP4/3gp player - Flash Lite 3.0 - Nokia Maps - T9 - Voice memo/commands

Battery		Standard battery, Li-Ion 1000 mAh (BL-4U)
	Stand-by	Up to 348 h (2G) / Up to 300 h (3G)
	Talk time	Up to 4 h (2G) / Up to 3 h (3G)

Nokia Mural

2009-09-29T07:54:00.000-07:00

General	2G Network	GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900
	Announced	2009, May
	Status	Coming soon. Exp. release 2009, Q4

Size	Dimensions	91.2 x 46.7 x 17.3 mm, 64.5 cc
Size	Weight	86.2 g

Display	Type	TFT, 256K colors
	Size	240 x 320 pixels, 2.2 inches
		- Second external monochrome display, 128 x 160 pixels - Tap-for-time

Sound	Alert types	Vibration; Downloadable polyphonic, MP3 ringtones
	Speakerphone	Yes
		- 2.5 mm audio jack

Memory	Phonebook	1000 entries, Photocall
	Call records	20 dialed, 20 received, 20 missed calls
	Internal	45 MB
	Card slot	microSD (TransFlash) up to 16GB

Data	GPRS	Class 32
	HSCSD	Yes
	EDGE	Class 32
	3G	No
	WLAN	No
	Bluetooth	Yes, v2.1
	Infrared port	No
	USB	Yes, microUSB v2.0

Camera	Primary	2 MP, 1600x1200 pixels
	Video	Yes, QVGA@30fps
	Secondary	No

Features	Messaging	SMS, MMS, Email
	Browser	WAP 2.0/xHTML, HTML
	Radio	Stereo FM radio with RDS
	Games	9 + Downloadable
	Colors	Graphite, Hot Pink, Silver, Blue
	GPS	No
	Java	Yes, MIDP 2.1
		- MP3/MP4 player - Organizer - Voice memo/dial - Nokia Maps - Flash Lite 3.0 - Windows Live messenger - English-Chinese dictionary - T9

Battery		Standard battery, Li-Ion 860 mAh (BL-4S)
	Stand-by	Up to 360 h
	Talk time	Up to 4 h 30 min
	Music play	Up to 20 h

Misc	Price group

Nokia 2730 classic

2009-09-29T07:53:00.000-07:00

General	2G Network	GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900
	3G Network	UMTS 900 / 2100
		UMTS 850 / 1900 - American version
	Announced	2009, May
	Status	Coming soon. Exp. release 2009, Q3

Size	Dimensions	109.6 x 46.9 x 14.4 mm, 65 cc
Size	Weight	87.7 g

Display	Type	TFT, 256K colors
	Size	240 x 320 pixels, 2.0 inches
		- 5-way navigation key

Sound	Alert types	Vibration; Downloadable polyphonic, MP3 ringtones
	Speakerphone	Yes
		- 3.5 mm audio jack

Memory	Phonebook	1000 entries, Photocall
	Call records	20 dialed, 20 received, 20 missed calls
	Internal	30 MB
	Card slot	microSD (TransFlash), up to 2GB, 1GB included

Data	GPRS	Class 32
	HSCSD	Yes
	EDGE	Class 32
	3G	Yes, 384 kbps
	WLAN	No
	Bluetooth	Yes, v2.0 with A2DP
	Infrared port	No
	USB	microUSB, v2.0

Camera	Primary	2 MP, 1600x1200 pixels
	Video	Yes
	Secondary	No

Features	Messaging	SMS, EMS, MMS, Email
	Browser	WAP 2.0/xHTML
	Radio	Stereo FM radio
	Games	4 + Downloadable
	Colors	Black or Dark Magenta
	GPS	No
	Java	Yes, MIDP 2.0
		- MP3/MP4 player - Organizer - Voice memo - Voice dial - Flash Lite 2.0 - Chinese-English-Chinese dictionary - Windows Live Messenger (MSN) - Nokia Maps - T9

Battery		Standard battery, Li-Ion (BL-5C)
	Stand-by	Up to 396 h (2G) / Up to 408 h (3G)
	Talk time	Up to 7 h 20 min (2G) / Up to 3 h 30 min (3G)
	Music play	Up to 12 h

Misc	Price group

Nokia 6216 classic

2009-09-29T07:50:00.001-07:00

General	2G Network	GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900
	3G Network	UMTS 850 / 2100
	Announced	2009, April
	Status	Coming soon. Exp. release 2009, Q3

Size	Dimensions	114.7 x 41.7 x 14.5 mm, 61.1 cc
Size	Weight	88 g

Display	Type	TFT, 16M colors
	Size	240 x 320 pixels, 2.0 inches
		- Downloadable wallpapers, screensavers

Sound	Alert types	Vibration; Downloadable polyphonic, MP3, AAC ringtones
	Speakerphone	Yes
		- 2.5 mm audio jack

Memory	Phonebook	Yes, up to 2000 entries, Photocall
	Call records	20 dialed, 20 received, 20 missed calls
	Internal	22 MB
	Card slot	microSD (TransFlash), up to 8 GB supported

Data	GPRS	Class 10 (4+1/3+2 slots), 32 - 48 kbps
	HSCSD	Yes
	EDGE	Class 10, 236.8 kbps
	3G	Yes, 384 kbps
	WLAN	No
	Bluetooth	Yes, v2.0 with A2DP
	Infrared port	No
	USB	Yes, miniUSB

Camera	Primary	2 MP, 1600x1200 pixels, LED flash
	Video	Yes, VGA@15fps
	Secondary	VGA videocall camera

Features	Messaging	SMS, MMS, Email, Push E-Mail, IM
	Browser	WAP 2.0/xHTML, HTML (Opera Mini)
	Radio	Stereo FM radio, Visual radio
	Games	Yes + Downloadable
	Colors	Coco Pearl
	GPS	No
	Java	Yes, MIDP 2.0
		- SIM-based Near Field Communication NFC (read/write/sharing) - Nokia Xpress Audio messaging - Push to talk - MP3/MP4 player - Voice memo - Voice dial - Organizer - Stop watch - Countdown timer - Active standby screen

Battery		Standard battery, Li-Ion 1000 mAh (BL-4U)
	Stand-by	Up to 300 h (2G) / 288 h (3G)
	Talk time	Up to 3 h 20 min (2G) / 2 h 45 min (3G)

Misc	Price group

Samsung B5310 CorbyPRO and B3210 CorbyTXT

2009-09-26T06:42:00.003-07:00

Introduction

When the Samsung S3650 Corby was announced hardly anyone saw it as something more than a nice looking handset that comes on a really attractive price. As it turns out though that event was the birth of a whole new family that promises to change the way we look at touchscreen handsets.

So several weeks later we made sure that we won't repeat the same mistake and paid all the due attention to the second wave of Corbys announced. Luckily, we were able to attend the official announcement event held in Milan and got a chance to see the new devices live right after their official announcement.

The Samsung Corby event, held in Milan

Quite as the rumors suggested, what we saw was the first public appearance of two new Corby handsets. The Samsung B3210 CorbyTXT and Samsung B5310 CorbyPRO have quite similar design to their brother, but their designation is completely different. They are also placed either side of the original Corby in the ranking of the company's mobile phone portfolio.

Samsung B5310 CorbyPRO

The Samsung B3210 CorbyTXT will address the needs of heavy texters on a very tight budget while the B5310 CorbyPRO will hardly come as cheap but introduces a lot of high-end features to the family, while still retaining the signature colorful and youthful appearance.

Samsung B3210 CorbyTXT

The distinct youthful appeal is what unites the Corby family but each of its members has plenty of character of its own. That last two additions show that Samsung see enough space available on the market for budget QWERTY handsets to justify their development. Judging by the popularity of the LG KS360 they might be quite right.

The larger of the two Korean manufacturers is playing catch-up this time, but that doesn't mean that they aren't going for the win. The Corby family new members have a lot of potential and LG will have a hard time retaining its market supremacy against them.

So now that you know what to expect you can join us on the next page to see what kind of first impression the Samsung B5310 CorbyPRO makes. It looked pretty nice on that official presentation at least.

Nokia E55

2009-09-26T06:42:00.001-07:00

Introduction

Sometimes, a phone is nearly perfect, except for that one small thing you want to change. If you felt that way about Nokia E52, the E55 claims to have the answer. Don't get us wrong - the E52 has killer looks and specs. And the E55… well, like we told you, it's the same phone save for that one little thing.

Nokia E55 official photos

If QWERTY keyboards are for heavy texters where does half-QWERTY fit? Some would say it's the same target but different goal. You know, like heavy texting is a bad habit and half-QWERTY is the therapy. Now, now, no need to be too smart. But does it really make typing faster or slower, and how hard it is to learn the new layout? We ran a test to find out.

But more on that later. Thanks to the excellent connectivity options and Office editing out of the box, the E55 keeps your office at arm's length - whether you're out to lunch or out of town. Emails, presentations, spreadsheets, memos - you can bring all that everywhere you go. But hey, we're not saying you should. Thanks to Modes, switching between Business and Personal homescreens makes sure you don't have to bring work home.

Texting and email go without saying, but the Nokia E55 is one of the best-equipped Symbian devices around. Here's the rundown:

Key features

Compact metallic body and extra slim girth (9.9mm)
Quad-band GSM support
3G with HSDPA 10.2 Mbps and HSUPA 2 Mbps
half-QWERTY keyboard
2.4" 16M-color display of QVGA resolution
Symbian OS, S60 UI with FP2
600 MHz ARM 11 CPU and 128 MB RAM
Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g, UPnP technology, DLNA support
Built-in GPS receiver, A-GPS support, digital compass
Accelerometer for screen auto-rotation and turn-to-mute
One-touch shortcut keys mean "business"
3 megapixel enhanced fixed focus camera with LED flash
Secondary videocall camera
60 MB of internal memory, microSD expansion, ships with a 2GB card
microUSB v2.0
Standard 3.5mm audio jack
Bluetooth v2.0 with A2DP
FM radio with RDS
Class-leading audio output quality
N-Gage gaming support
Ovi Maps preinstalled with trial turn-by-turn navigation license (10 x 1 days, to be used within 3 months) and lifetime City Explorer license
User-friendly Mode Switch for swapping two homescreen setups
Office document editor (with free MS Office 2007 update)
Remote lock/wipe over-the-air
Comfortable keypad
Smart dialing
Great battery life

Main disadvantages

Disappointing camera features and performance
Video recording maxes out at VGA@15fps
No DivX or XviD support (can be installed, possibly requiring a purchase)
No TV-out functionality
Keyboard takes some time getting used to (not too long though)

Nokia E55 live shots

The Nokia E55 has something of a split personality. The business features are complete but wait till you see what it offers for recreation. N-Gage support gives you access to a host of games, the audio quality is up there with dedicated music players and the huge battery won't run out of juice until after hours of games and music.

The weekend getaway is also covered - just punch in your destination into Nokia Maps, and the E55 will take you there. It'll even suggest a list of local attractions.

Head to the next page where we open the box and share our experience with the Nokia E55 and its keyboard.

Samsung B7330 OmniaPRO

2009-09-26T06:41:00.002-07:00

Introduction

Samsung have just released their B7320 OmniaPRO and now, just a few short weeks later, they are introducing the B7330 OmniaPRO. Some might think there is something wrong. To get straight to the point, there’s nothing wrong with the B7320 OmniaPRO. But who are we to frown at an upgrade.

Now, that’s where it gets a bit tricky. First of all, it’s not a major upgrade involving a lot of investment and effort. Plus, the two handsets will perhaps coexist peacefully serving different markets. Still, a few nice little touches make the new B7330 OmniaPRO a real treat. The newcomer is slimmer, has brilliant ergonomics and is quite keen to double its predecessor’s data speeds and boost screen size and resolution.

Samsung B7330 OmniaPRO official photo

And the big news of course is Windows Mobile 6.5. We guess the release of the B7330 OmniaPRO is meant to herald the OS upgrade rather than send the B7320 into oblivion. Actually, the latter – along with the other current Omnia handsets running the earlier 6.1 version of the OS – will at some point be upgradeable to WinMo 6.5 anyway.

Having cleared that up, we can now get on with our first look at the cute Samsung B7330 OmniaPRO. Cute may sound a bit odd for a business device, but the handset does look and feel great, and is so wonderfully compact that we couldn’t think of any other word to describe it. So, it’s a brand new WinMo powered QWERTY messenger that’s keen to serve and please the eye. Sounds worth a closer look, doesn’t it?

Samsung B7330 OmniaPRO at a glance:

General: GSM 850/900/1800/1900 MHz, UMTS 900/1900/2100 MHz, EDGE class 10, HSDPA, 7.2 Mbps; HSUPA, 2 Mbps
Form factor: Full QWERTY bar phone
Dimensions: 114.9 x 59 x 10.8 mm, weight 107 grams
Display: 2.62" 65K color TFT display, 320 x 320 pixels, remarkable sunlight legibility
Platform: 528 MHz processor
OS: Microsoft Windows Mobile 6.5 Standard
Memory: 270MB storage, 256 MB RAM, hot-swappable microSD card slot (up to 32GB)
Camera: 3.15-megapixels auto-focus camera, geotagging, QVGA@30fps video recording
Connectivity: Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 2.0 with A2DP, standard microUSB port, GPS receiver with A-GPS
Misc: Office document viewer and editor
Battery: 1500 mAh Li-Ion battery

The Samsung B7330 OmniaPRO at ours

As you can see, there are some differences compared to the B7320 but they aren't that significant. However, what has been changed has been changed for the better, so now the screen sports some more pixels and real estate, there’s Windows Mobile 6.5 right out of the box, boosted up HSDPA and HSUPA, and a beefier battery.

Last but not least, the B7330 OmniaPRO has lost some weight and got thinner (the device measures 114.9 x 59 x 10.8 mm and weighs only 107 g) and is now much closer to the famous Nokia E71 or RIM’s BlackBerry devices. Comparing the B7330 to the E71 and the BlackBerry gang is no surprise since all these devices share similar features and perhaps potential users.

Anyways, enough talking, let's get down to it. Jump on as we explore what the B7330 OmniaPRO is made of, followed by a brief rundown of the interface.

Samsung S7550 Blue Earth

2009-09-26T06:41:00.001-07:00

Introduction

A blue earth it is. We mean there's no need to tell you our home planet is not quite in the pink. So, before you go on reading, you might want to turn off the lights and the telly, and go pick up a wind turbine and a bunch of solar panels at the local DIY. Forget where you put the car keys? Good, get the bike. Samsung says thanks.

OK, now seriously. Maybe it's good to know you're not the only one using recycled paper, composting your garbage and flushing the toilet responsibly. Samsung are perhaps really trying to encourage the effort. The S7550 Blue Earth is a gadget that gives much credence to the likely growth of eco-friendly products and technology.

Samsung S7550 Blue Earth official photos

The Samsung Blue Earth is a solar powered, eco-friendly phone that promotes green thinking. It's made of recycled water bottles, has an ultra low standby power DC charger and comes in a reusable box made of recycled paper. The first solar-powered touchscreen has a special "eco mode" to use the display in an energy efficient manner. The accelerometer-based step counter has a new spin to it too. It calculates how much CO2 would have been released if you drove instead of walked.

Another quite appropriate feature is the Eco Day list in the calendar, which gives you all the environment-related dates celebrated around the world. Without the Samsung Blue Earth we'd still be ignorant enough not to know what day is today. OK, not in that sense, but we honestly had no idea that September 16th is the World Ozone Day. So, take a deep breath, congratulate us on our timing and get ready for the Samsung S7550 Blue Earth.

Key features

Solar panel for battery charging
GSM 850/900/1800/1900 MHz, GPRS/EDGE class 12, UMTS 900/2100, HSDPA 3.6Mbps
Commendable build quality
3" capacitive TFT touchscreen, WQVGA resolution (240 x 400 pixels)
180MB onboard storage, microSD card slot (up to 16GB)
Wi-Fi, GPS with A-GPS support
3.15 megapixel fixed focus camera with smile detection and QVGA @ 30fps video recording
Bluetooth 2.1 with A2DP, USB v.2.0
Document viewer
Exchange ActiveSync support
Smart unlock
Accelerometer sensor
FM radio with RDS
Music recognition service
1080 mAh battery

Main disadvantages

Could've been slightly thinner
The screen is poorly visible in the sun
3 MP fixed focus camera is outdated
Grip and handling compromised by the solar panel

Samsung S7550 Blue Earth live shots

The solar panel is enough of a rarity in mobile phones. The Blue Earth is only the second mass production handset to have it, next to another Samsung phone - the entry level E1107 Crest Solar. Samsung E200 ECO in turn, was the company's first device made of environmentally-friendly materials. Eco-friendly telephony is not exclusive Samsung territory though. The Sony Ericsson GreenHeart program, as well as phones like Motorola W233 Renew and Nokia 3110 Evolve, show that major manufacturers are willing to at least explore this market niche.

Yet, the Samsung Blue Earth does look like the most complete and focused product to date. The eco-friendly concept was so far tested on rather marginal handsets - a straight-up remake like the Sony Ericsson C901 GreenHeart or downright basic phones. The Samsung Blue Earth tries to be different and we don't mean the relevant applications and the solar panel only. It's a fully featured phone and a touchscreen at that. That it was made with care for the environment doesn't mean they didn't care about the specs. The S7550 is a midrange phone which has more to offer than some of the recent Samsung bestsellers in the touchscreen category (take the S5230 Star for example). On top of the capacitive screen and TouchWiz, you get 3G, Wi-Fi, GPS and rich media.

Not the least, the Samsung S7550 Blue Earth is committed to its cause and you know that before you even take it out of the box. The retail package is enough of a green statement itself. Let's see.

Note: Sponsored advertising links are in green.

Sony Ericsson XPERIA X2

2009-09-26T06:40:00.002-07:00

The Sony Ericsson XPERIA X2 has been in the center of attention ever since its first unofficial shots leaked online. Much like most other gadgeteers, we've had our hands itching to get one and luckily our wishes just came true.

The Sony Ericsson XPERIA X2 is one impressive device full of industry leading features - it's the first Windows Mobile smartphone with an 8 megapixel camera and WVGA video recording and it's actually the first ever full QWERTY phone to have that sort of imaging prowess as well.

Sony Ericsson XPERIA X2

The XPERIA X2 most other features, though not as innovative, are a nice match as well. We guess they are worth going through one more time.

Sony Ericsson XPERIA X2 at a glance:

General: GSM 850/900/1800/1900 MHz, UMTS 900/1900/2100 MHz, EDGE class 10, HSDPA, 7.2 Mbps; HSUPA, 2 Mbps
Form factor: Slide-and-tilt QWERTY touch phone
Dimensions: 110 x 54 x 16 mm, weight 155 grams
Display: 3.2" TFT resistive touchscreen, 800 x 480 pixels
Platform: Qualcomm MSM 7200 528 MHz processor
OS: Microsoft Windows Mobile 6.5 Professional
Memory: 110MB storage, 256 MB RAM, 512 MB ROM, microSD card slot
Camera: 8-megapixels auto-focus camera, LED flash, touch focus, geotagging, face detection, image stabilizer, Smart Contrast, WVGA@30fps video recording
Connectivity: Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 2.1 with A2DP, standard microUSB port, GPS receiver with A-GPS, 3.5mm audio jack, TV-out
Misc: Optical trackpad, accelerometer for motion-based gaming, office document viewer and editor, XviD video support
Battery: 1500 mAh Li-Po battery

We just got the XPERIA X2 and we wanted to share with you our first impressions of the device. So consider this article as a quick and dirty preview, with a more detailed one coming up in the following week. We hope to get as much as possible from our encounter with the X2 and you can bet we surely won't keep anything to ourselves.

UPDATE 8 Sept: We decided to update this article with some new stuff instead of creating a new preview as the XPERIA X2 hardly deserves any further detailing at this early stage of its development. It still has quite a few software issues that will without a doubt be fixed in the future software builds.

So today we've added a whole new page on the messaging, web browser and 3D games and we've also updated our conclusion to take the most viable market alternatives into account. We really hope to see the XPERIA X2 again for a full-blown review, once its hits the stores all nice and bug-free.

Sony Ericsson XPERIA X2 in our office

The XPERIA X2 should be available in two colors - Elegant Black and Modern Silver. There's hardly anything missing from the broad range of connectivity options. Perhaps the only two things it seems to lack are the FM radio and the automatic screen rotation. Yes, there's an accelerometer on board alright, but the screen doesn't auto rotate to match the orientation of the handset.

While the XPERIA X2 uses the vanilla Windows Mobile 6.5 Professional, the thing that sets it apart from competing products is the X-panels interface. X panels have gone a long way since the XPERIA X1 and have turned into a full featured system for using various animated and interactive homescreens. But we'll get to that further down.

Anyways, enough talking, let's get to some walking. Jump on as explore what the XPERIA X2 is made of with even a brief rundown of the interface later on.

Vodafone 360 M1

2009-09-26T06:40:00.001-07:00

General	2G Network	GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900
	3G Network	HSDPA 900 / 2100
	Announced	2009, September
	Status	Coming soon. Exp. release 2009, Q4

Size	Dimensions	55 x 111 x 13.3 mm
Size	Weight	111 g

Display	Type	TFT touchscreen, 16M colors
	Size	800 x 480 pixels, 3.2 inches
		- 3D user interface

Sound	Alert types	Vibration; Polyphonic, MP3 ringtones
	Speakerphone	Yes
		- 3.5mm audio jack

Memory	Phonebook	Practically unlimited entries
	Call records	20 dialed, 20 received, 20 missed calls
	Internal	1 GB
	Card slot	microSD (TransFlash) up to 16GB

Data	GPRS	Class 10 (4+1/3+2 slots), 32 - 48 kbps
	HSCSD	No
	EDGE	Class 10, 236.8 kbps
	3G	HSDPA
	WLAN	No
	Bluetooth	Yes, v2.0 with A2DP
	Infrared port	No
	USB	Yes, v2.0

Camera	Primary	3.15 MP, 2048 x 1536 pixels
	Video	Yes
	Secondary	Yes

Features	OS	LiMo OS
	CPU	ARM Cortex A8 600 MHz, PowerVR SGX graphics
	Messaging	SMS, MMS
	Browser	HTML
	Radio	Stereo FM radio with RDS
	Games	Yes
	Colors	Black, White, Red
	GPS	Yes, with A-GPS support
	Java	Yes, MIDP 2.0
		- MP3/video player - Organizer

Battery		Standard battery, Li-Ion
	Stand-by
	Talk time	Up to 10 h (2G) / Up to 6 h 40 min (3G)

Vodafone 360 H1

2009-09-26T06:39:00.001-07:00

General	2G Network	GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900
	3G Network	HSDPA 2100
	Announced	2009, September
	Status	Coming soon. Exp. release 2009, Q4

Size	Dimensions	115.9 x 58 x 12.9 mm, 60 cc
Size	Weight	134 g

Display	Type	AMOLED, 16M colors
	Size	800 x 480 pixels, 3.5 inches
		- 3D user interface

Sound	Alert types	Vibration; Polyphonic(64), MP3 ringtones
	Speakerphone	Yes
		- 3.5mm audio jack

Memory	Phonebook	Practically unlimited entries
	Call records
	Internal	16 GB
	Card slot	microSD (TransFlash) up to 16GB

Data	GPRS	Class 10 (4+1/3+2 slots), 32 - 48 kbps
	HSCSD	No
	EDGE	Class 10, 236.8 kbps
	3G	HSDPA
	WLAN	Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g
	Bluetooth	Yes, v2.0 with A2DP
	Infrared port	No
	USB	Yes, v2.0

Camera	Primary	5 MP, 2560 x 1920 pixels, autofocus, LED flash
	Video	Yes
	Secondary	Yes

Features	OS	LiMo OS
	CPU	ARM Cortex A8 600 MHz, PowerVR SGX graphics
	Messaging	SMS, MMS
	Browser	HTML
	Radio	Stereo FM radio with RDS
	Games	Yes
	Colors	Black, Silver
	GPS	Yes, with A-GPS support
	Java	Yes, MIDP 2.0
		- MP3/video player - Organizer

Battery		Standard battery, Li-Ion
	Stand-by
	Talk time	Up to 10 h (2G) / Up to 6 h 40 min (3G)

Samsung E1080T

2009-09-26T06:38:00.001-07:00

General	2G Network	GSM 900 / 1800
	Announced	2009, September
	Status	Available. Released 2009, September

Size	Dimensions	107.4 x 45.5 x 13.6 mm
Size	Weight	64.5 g

Display	Type	CSTN, 65K colors
Display	Size	128 x 128 pixels, 1.43 inches

Sound	Alert types	Vibration; MP3 ringtones
	Speakerphone	Yes

Memory	Phonebook	500 entries
	Call records	30 dialed, 30 received, 30 missed calls
	Internal	1 MB
	Card slot	No

Data	GPRS	Class 10 (4+1/3+2 slots), 32 - 48 kbps
	HSCSD	Yes
	EDGE
	3G	No
	WLAN	No
	Bluetooth	No
	Infrared port	No
	USB	Yes

Camera		no

Features	Messaging	SMS
	Browser
	Radio	No
	Games	Yes
	Colors	Black
	GPS	No
	Java	Yes, MIDP 2.0
		- Organizer - Voice memo - T9

Battery		Standard battery, Li-Ion 800 mAh
	Stand-by	Up to 560 h
	Talk time	Up to 9 h

Misc	Price group

Samsung B3210 CorbyTXT

2009-09-26T06:36:00.000-07:00

General	2G Network	GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900
	Announced	2009, September
	Status	Coming soon. Exp. release 2009, September

Size	Dimensions	112 x 59.6 x 12.9 mm
Size	Weight	94 g

Display	Type	TFT, 256K colors
	Size	176 x 144 pixels, 2.2 inches
		- Full QWERTY keyboard

Sound	Alert types	Vibration; Downloadable polyphonic, MP3 ringtones
	Speakerphone	Yes
		- 3.5 mm audio jack

Memory	Phonebook	1000 contacts, Photo call
	Call records	Yes
	Internal	40 MB
	Card slot	microSD (TransFlash) up to 8GB

Data	GPRS	Class 10 (4+1/3+2 slots), 32 - 48 kbps
	HSCSD	Yes
	EDGE	Class 10, 236.8 kbps
	3G	No
	WLAN	No
	Bluetooth	Yes, v2.1 with A2DP
	Infrared port	No
	USB	Yes, v2.0

Camera	Primary	2 MP, 1600x1200 pixels
	Video	Yes
	Secondary	No

Features	Messaging	SMS, MMS, Email, IM
	Browser	WAP 2.0 / xHTML, HTML
	Radio	Stereo FM radio with RDS
	Games	Yes
	Colors	Black
	GPS	No
	Java	Yes, MIDP 2.0
		- Fashion Jackets (changeable battery covers) - MP3/AAC/WMA player - Organizer - Office document viewer - Voice memo/dial - T9

Battery		Standard battery, Li-Ion 800 mAh
	Stand-by	-
	Talk time	-

Samsung S3650 Corby

2009-09-16T08:37:00.000-07:00

Introduction

Like every maker out there, Samsung are keen to keep users coming back for more. But serving, inspiring and entertaining today's crowd is not enough it seems. So the next step is raising future Samsung users. The S3650 Corby is tech-savvy and fresh - just like its target audience. And this entry level touchscreen seems to quite nicely suit both the user's liking and bill-payer's budget.

The S3650 Corby is for youngsters that are keen on technology, for active social networkers, for those who like to personalize and customize. The budget price implies no fancy stuff but the wide range of features is absolutely relevant to the target audience.

Samsung S3650 Corby official photos

Samsung S3650 Corby is a very fresh looking handset too - distinct shape and bold paintjobs. It won't really make much sense in adult hands but the Fashion Jackets - bright-colored interchangeable rear covers - are perhaps as strong a selling point as the capacitive touchscreen. There're two extra Jackets in the retail box to make the time spent with the S3650 Corby even more personal experience.

On the social side, the Samsung S3650 Corby offers Facebook, MySpace and Twitter integration, while photo and video sharing are taken care of with direct uploads to YouTube, Flickr, Picasa and Photobucket. You can update your status on the various social networking sites and receive updates from your friends via a neat pop-up notification feature. All that is a tap away on the 2.8" capacitive touchscreen.

Key features

Quad-band GSM/EDGE
2.8" capacitive TFT touchscreen of QVGA resolution
90 MB onboard storage, microSD card slot (up to 8GB)
2 megapixel fixed-focus camera with smile detection, QVGA@15fps video recording
FM radio with RDS
Find Music recognition service
TouchWiz and Cartoon UI
Social networking integration with direct file uploads
Bluetooth 2.1 with A2DP, USB v.2.0
Office document viewer
Smart unlock
Interchangeable rear covers (Fashion Jackets), ships with two extra panels
Relatively low price for a full touch phone (around 150 euro)

Main disadvantages

No 3G
The camera has no autofocus or flash
No accelerometer for screen auto rotation
No on-screen QWERTY keyboard
Proprietary connectivity port
No smart dialing
microSD slot under the battery cover

Samsung S3650 live shots • S3650 Corby's fresh paintjobs

Budget and low end can be easily mixed up with the Corby. But along with the features mentioned above, the basic handset has a lot of the technology used in the more expensive Samsung Jet. The S3650 Corby supports the same finger zoom feature, it has smart unlock and runs the widget-based TouchWiz user interface - not to mention the nice Samsung's home-brew web browser.

Samsung S3650 Corby style photos

The S3650 Corby is by no means different than the latest crop of low and midrange Samsung touchscreens but its distinct styling and targeting sure make it worth a peek. Hit the jump for more cool photos and a 3D spin. We then proceed with handling and ergonomics.

XPERIA

2009-09-16T08:36:00.002-07:00

Sony Ericsson Xperia Pureness is a one-off devil - it's got a vanilla feature set but is the first phone with a see-through display. Some new info about it just surfaced suggesting it should go on sale as soon as this November - at least in the UK, that is.

Positioned as an exclusive luxury handset, the Sony Ericsson XPERIA Pureness won't be distributed via the usual retailers and carriers, but will only be displayed in high-end stores and boutiques with a price to match - running around 600 euro.

Well, the exclusive status isn't such a surprise since Sony Ericsson describe their new device as a "a simple design phone which brings together beautiful craftsmanship and the concept of "talk, text, time - a holiday from technology". The Pureness obviously targets the high-end luxury class and the hardware specs sheet will hardly inspire gadgeteers - unless of course you have a fetish for transparent objects with an extra spicy price tag.

Previously known as Kiki, the Xperia Pureness will be promoted "as a work of art rather than technology" and as revealed now Sony Ericsson will position the phone as an "iconic niche product, not mass market".

Similar to another luxury phone - the Motorola Aura - the Xperia Pureness will be sold in design-museum shops and high-end stores such as Selfridges. You will find it there some time this November just in time for the holidays

Source

Nokia 8800 Erdos

2009-09-16T08:36:00.001-07:00

Nokia 8800 series of luxury phones have always focused on high quality materials and superior build quality, while holding back on the spec sheet. With the Nokia 8800 Erdos this reputation is about to change.

First off, "Erdos" is just a code name so expect that to change at some point. And second - this won't be an Arte. The Arte phones have had largely the same design, differing in materials only. The 8800 Erdos changes not only the design but also the way the phones are built.

The Nokia Ardos body will be constructed out of a single piece of "bullet silver". This apparently is marketing talk for stainless steel, so you probably can't kill a werewolf with it, but carving out the body out of a single piece of metal is all the rage with high-end laptops and the ridiculously expensive luxury phones.

The screen of the Erdos however is covered with regular scratch-proof glass, rather than sapphire, which is the usual weapon of choice in such cases. The glass covering the screen though turns silver when the display is off, giving the impression that the phone is a single slab of stainless steel. The screen itself is an OLED unit with QVGA resolution and a diagonal of 2.4 inches.

Nokia 8800 Erdos

The high-end design of the Nokia 8800 Erdos includes a rather unique feature too - it's a slider like the rest of its siblings, but the keypad raises to the level of the display when you slide it out. This should make the keys of the top row much more accessible.

Sounds good already, but we haven't even gotten to the good part yet - the Nokia 8800 Erdos is the first of its breed to be a full-on smartphone. It'll run the Symbian OS S60 and feature Wi-Fi and A-GPS. The internal memory is 8GB, though there's no card slot.

The camera is the best in the luxury class with its 5 megapixels and Carl Zeiss lens with autofocus. There's a dual-LED flash too.

Rounding off the specs is the reasonably compact size of the phone. The 8800 Erdos measures 116.9 x 50,3 x 15.0 mm, though its weight is kept on the hush-hush. There is also a dedicated noise reduction microphone on the back.

The Nokia 8800 Erdos will be available in October with tri-band GSM (900/1800/1900) and dual-band 3G/HSPA. The price is the other thing missing from the rumored specs, though this could easily top the price point of the Gold Arte.

4.3-inch Archos tablet runs Android, has 1GHz CPU

2009-09-16T08:33:00.000-07:00

will sport the monstrous screen with 854 x 480 resolution, with a 1GHz CPU beating in its chest. All this goodness comes in a shell only 10mm thick, did you All this goodness comes in a shell only 10mm thick. Quite impressive right?

The 4.3" screen puts the Archos phone tablet a step ahead of the Toshiba TG01 and pits it against the HTC Leo, A.K.A. HTC Pro Three, to fight it out in the pocket-busting category. Unlike both of its competitors, the Archos phone will run Android instead of Windows Mobile, which puts excellent web integration on the table. This yet unnamed tablet-slash-phone will have HSDPA connectivity, which is pretty essential to internet browsing.

Those of you familiar with the Android platform know that practically all the handsets running the OS have HVGA screen resolution. This is mainly because of lack of support for other resolutions.

Fret not, Android 1.6 Donut is coming to change that. The SDK of the new version has just been released and it will be making its way on some devices as early as next month.

The Donut will ensure that applications render properly, regardless of screen aspect and pixel density. The other goodies are an updated Market, text-to-speech capabilities and CDMA support. The search box will also be updated and will do a local search as well as a Google search - each app can expose its contents to the search, e.g. a book reader app can allow the downloaded books to be searched.

Check out this video for more detail on the new release, explained to you by Android itself:

Palm Pre

2009-09-15T08:18:00.001-07:00

General	2G Network	GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900
	3G Network	HSDPA 850 / 1900 / 2100
	Announced	2009, Februray
	Status	Coming soon

Size	Dimensions	100.5 x 59.5 x 16.9 mm
Size	Weight	133 g

Display	Type	TFT capacitive touchscreen, 16M colors
	Size	320 x 480 pixels, 3.1 inches
		- Full QWERTY keyboard - Accelerometer sensor for auto-rotate

Sound	Alert types	Vibration; Downloadable polyphonic, MP3 ringtones
	Speakerphone	Yes
		- 3.5 mm audio jack

Memory	Phonebook	Practically unlimited entries, Photocall
	Call records	Practically unlimited
	Internal	8 GB
	Card slot	No

Data	GPRS	Class 10 (4+1/3+2 slots), 32 - 48 kbps
	HSCSD	No
	EDGE	Yes
	3G	HSDPA
	WLAN	Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g
	Bluetooth	Yes, v2.1 with A2DP
	Infrared port	Yes
	USB	Yes, microUSB

Camera	Primary	3.15 MP, 2048x1536 pixels, enhanced fixed focus, LED flash
	Video	No
	Secondary	No

Features	OS	Palm webOS
	CPU	ARM Cortex A8 600 MHz, PowerVR SGX graphics
	Messaging	SMS (threaded view), MMS, Email
	Browser	WAP 2.0 / HTML (PocketIE)
	Radio	No
	Games	Yes
	Colors	Black
	GPS	Yes
	Java
		- Voice memo

Battery		Standard battery, Li-Ion
	Stand-by
	Talk time

Samsung S5230W Star WiFi

2009-09-15T08:14:00.001-07:00

General	2G Network	GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900
	Announced	2009, September
	Status	Available. Released 2009, September

Size	Dimensions	104 x 53 x 11.9 mm
Size	Weight	92 g

Display	Type	TFT resistive touchscreen, 256K colors
	Size	240 x 400 pixels, 3.0 inches
		- Accelerometer sensor - Handwriting recognition - Smart unlock

Sound	Alert types	Vibration; Downloadable polyphonic, MP3, WAV ringtones
	Speakerphone	Yes
		- DNSe (Digital Natural Sound Engine)

Memory	Phonebook	Yes, Photo Contact
	Call records	Yes
	Internal	50 MB
	Card slot	microSD (TransFlash), up to 16GB (verified), buy memory

Data	GPRS	Class 12 (4+1/3+2/2+3/1+4 slots), 32 - 48 kbps
	HSCSD	No
	EDGE	Class 12
	3G	No
	WLAN	Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g
	Bluetooth	Yes, v2.1 with A2DP
	Infrared port	No
	USB	Yes, v2.0

Camera	Primary	3.15 MP, 2048x1536 pixels
	Features	Smile detection
	Video	Yes, QVGA@15fps
	Secondary	No

Features	Messaging	SMS, MMS, Email
	Browser	WAP 2.0/xHTML, HTML
	Radio	Stereo FM radio with RDS
	Games	Yes + downloadable
	Colors	Black, Silver, White, Pink
	GPS	No
	Java	Yes, MIDP 2.0
		- MP3/WMA/AAC player - H.263/H.264/MP4 player - Organizer - Document viewer (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, PDF) - Shazam Find Music service

Battery		Standard battery, Li-Ion 1000 mAh
	Stand-by	Up to 700 h
	Talk time	Up to 10 h

HTC Tattoo

2009-09-15T08:13:00.001-07:00

General	2G Network	GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900
	3G Network	HSDPA 900 / 2100
	Announced	2009, September
	Status	Coming soon. Exp. release 2009, October

Size	Dimensions	106 x 55.2 x 14 mm
Size	Weight	113 g

Display	Type	TFT resistive touchscreen, 65K colors
	Size	240 x 320 pixels, 2.8 inches
		- Sense UI - Accelerometer sensor for auto-rotate

Sound	Alert types	Vibration; Downloadable polyphonic, MP3, WAV ringtones
	Speakerphone	Yes
		- 3.5 mm audio jack

Memory	Phonebook	Practically unlimited entries and fields, Photocall
	Call records	Practically unlimited
	Internal	256 MB RAM, 512 MB ROM
	Card slot	microSD (TransFlash)

Data	GPRS	Class 10 (4+1/3+2 slots), 32 - 48 kbps
	HSCSD	Yes
	EDGE	Class 10, 236.8 kbps
	3G	HSDPA, 7.2 Mbps; HSUPA, 384 kbps
	WLAN	Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g
	Bluetooth	Yes v2.0 with A2DP
	Infrared port	No
	USB	Yes, miniUSB

Camera	Primary	3.15 MP, 2048x1536 pixels, autofocus
	Video	Yes
	Secondary	No

Features	OS	Android OS, v1.5 (Cupcake)
	CPU	Qualcomm MSM 7225 528 MHz processor
	Messaging	SMS(threaded view), MMS, Email, IM
	Browser	HTML
	Radio	Stereo FM radio with RDS
	Games	Yes
	Colors	Brown, White, Graphite, Black
	GPS	Yes, with A-GPS support
	Java
		- Digital compass - Dedicated search key - Scenes quick profile switcher - MP3/eAAC+/WAV/WMA9 player - MP4/H.263/H.264/WMV9 player - Voice memo - T9

Battery		Standard battery, Li-Ion 1100 mAh
	Stand-by	Up to 340 h (2G) / Up to 520 h (3G)
	Talk time	Up to 6 h 30 min (2G) / Up to 5 h 40 min (3G)

Motorola DEXT MB220

2009-09-15T08:09:00.000-07:00

General	2G Network	GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900
	3G Network	HSDPA 1700 / 2100 / 900
	Announced	2009, September
	Status	Coming soon. Exp. release 2009, October

Size	Dimensions	114 x 58 x 15.6 mm
Size	Weight	163 g

Display	Type	TFT capacitive touchscreen, 256K colors
	Size	320 x 480 pixels, 3.1 inches
		- Accelerometer sensor - Proximity sensor for auto turn-off - Full QWERTY keyboard with 5-way navigation key - MOTOBLUR UI with Live Widgets

Sound	Alert types	Vibration; Downloadable polyphonic, MP3, AAC ringtones
	Speakerphone	Yes
		- 3.5 mm audio jack

Memory	Phonebook	Practically unlimited entries and fields, Photo call
	Call records	Practically unlimited
	Internal	1 GB storage, 256MB RAM, 512MB ROM
	Card slot	microSD (TransFlash), up to 32GB, 2GB included

Data	GPRS	Class 12 (4+1/3+2/2+3/1+4 slots), 32 - 48 kbps
	HSCSD	Yes
	EDGE	Class 12
	3G	HSDPA, 7.2 Mbps
	WLAN	Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g
	Bluetooth	Yes, v2.1 with A2DP
	Infrared port	No
	USB	Yes, microUSB v2.0

Camera	Primary	5 MP, 2592 x 1944 pixels, autofocus
	Features	Geo-tagging
	Video	Yes, HVGA@24fps (MP4)
	Secondary	No

Features	OS	Android OS, v1.5 (Cupcake)
	CPU	Qualcomm MSM7201A 528 MHz processor
	Messaging	SMS, MMS, Email
	Browser	HTML
	Radio	No
	Games	Yes
	Colors	Midnight Titanium, Winter White
	GPS	Yes, with A-GPS support
	Java
		- Noise cancellation with dedicated microphone - Digital compass - Google Maps with Street View - MP3/eAAC+/WAV/WMA9 player - MP4/H.263/H.264/WMV9 player - Organizer - Document viewer - Shazam - iMeem Mobile - Voice memo - T9

Battery		Standard battery, Li-Ion 1420 mAh
	Stand-by	Up to 320 h
	Talk time	Up to 6 h

HTC Touch2

2009-09-15T08:06:00.001-07:00

General	2G Network	GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900
	3G Network	HSDPA 900 / 2100
	Announced	2009, September
	Status	Coming soon. Exp. release 2009, 4Q

Size	Dimensions	104 x 55 x 12.9 mm
Size	Weight	110 g

Display	Type	TFT resistive touchscreen, 65K colors
	Size	240 x 320 pixels, 2.8 inches
		- TouchFLO 3D finger swipe navigation - Accelerometer sensor for auto-rotate - Touch-sensitive zoom bar - Handwriting recognition

Sound	Alert types	Vibration; Downloadable polyphonic, MP3, WAV ringtones
	Speakerphone	Yes
		- 3.5mm audio jack

Memory	Phonebook	Practically unlimited entries and fields, Photocall
	Call records	Practically unlimited
	Internal	256 MB RAM, 512 MB ROM
	Card slot	microSD (TransFlash)

Data	GPRS	Class 10 (4+1/3+2 slots), 32 - 48 kbps
	HSCSD	Yes
	EDGE	Class 10, 236.8 kbps
	3G	HSDPA, 7.2 Mbps
	WLAN	Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g
	Bluetooth	Yes, v2.1 with A2DP
	Infrared port	No
	USB	Yes, miniUSB

Camera	Primary	3.15 MP, 2048x1536 pixels
	Video	Yes
	Secondary	No

Features	OS	Microsoft Windows Mobile 6.5 Professional
	CPU	Qualcomm MSM7225 528 MHz processor
	Messaging	SMS (threaded view), MMS, Email, IM, Push Email
	Browser	HTML
	Radio	No
	Games	Yes
	Colors	Black, Brown, Silver
	GPS	Yes, with A-GPS support
	Java	Yes, MIDP 2.0
		- MP3/WAV/eAAC+/WMA player - MP4/WMV/H.263/H.264 player - Pocket Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote, PDF viewer) - Organizer - Voice memo - T9

Battery		Standard battery, Li-Ion 1000 mAh
	Stand-by	Up to 500 h (2G) / Up to 370 h (3G)
	Talk time	Up to 7 h 30 min (2G) / Up to 6 h 10 min (3G)

LG GW620

2009-09-15T08:04:00.000-07:00

General	2G Network	GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900
		HSDPA 2100
	Announced	2009, September
	Status	Coming soon. Exp. release 2009, 4Q

Size	Dimensions	-
Size	Weight	-

Display	Type	TFT resistive touchscreen, 256K colors
	Size	320 x 480 pixels, 3.0 inches
		- Full QWERTY keyboard - Accelerometer sensor for auto-rotate

Sound	Alert types	Vibration; Downloadable polyphonic, MP3 ringtones
	Speakerphone	Yes

Memory	Phonebook	1000 entries, Photocall
	Call records	Yes
	Card slot	microSD (TransFlash), up to 16GB

Data	GPRS	Class 12 (4+1/3+2/2+3/1+4 slots), 32 - 48 kbps
	HSCSD	Yes
	EDGE	Class 10, 236.8 kbps
	3G	HSDPA 7.2 Mbps
	WLAN	Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g
	Bluetooth	Yes, v2.0 with A2DP
	Infrared port	No
	USB	Yes, v2.0 microUSB

Camera	Primary	5 MP, 2560 x 1920 pixels, autofocus
	Video	Yes
	Secondary	No

Features	OS	Android OS
	Messaging	SMS (threaded view), MMS, Email, IM, Push Email
	Browser	WAP 2.0/xHTML, HTML
	Radio	Stereo FM radio
	Games	Yes + downloadable
	Colors	Blue on Black
	GPS	Yes, with A-GPS support
	Java	Yes, MIDP 2.0
		- MP3/MP4/AAC/AAC+/EAAC+/WMA player - MP4 player - Organizer - Photo/video editor - Voice memo - T9

Battery
	Stand-by	-
	Talk time	-

Nokia N97 mini

2009-09-15T07:58:00.000-07:00

General	2G Network	GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900
	3G Network	HSDPA 850 / 900 / 1900 / 2100
	Announced	2009, September
	Status	Coming soon. Exp. release 2009, October

Size	Dimensions	113 x 52.5 x 14.2 mm, 75 cc
Size	Weight	138 g

Display	Type	TFT resistive touchscreen, 16M colors
	Size	360 x 640 pixels, 3.2 inches
		- Proximity sensor for auto turn-off - Accelerometer sensor for auto-rotate - Full QWERTY keyboard - Handwriting recognition

Sound	Alert types	Vibration; MP3 ringtones
	Speakerphone	Yes, with stereo speakers
		- 3.5 mm audio jack

Memory	Phonebook	Practically unlimited entries and fields, Photocall
	Call records	Detailed, max 30 days
	Internal	8 GB storage, 128 MB RAM
	Card slot	microSD (TransFlash), up to 16GB

Data	GPRS	Class 32
	HSCSD	Yes
	EDGE	Class 32
	3G	HSDPA, 3.6 Mbps
	WLAN	Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g, UPnP technology
	Bluetooth	Yes, v2.0 with A2DP
	Infrared port	No
	USB	Yes, v2.0 microUSB

Camera	Primary	5 MP, 2592x1944 pixels, Carl Zeiss optics, autofocus, Dual LED flash, video light
	Features	Geo-tagging
	Video	Yes, VGA@30fps
	Secondary	Yes, VGA@15fps

Features	OS	Symbian OS v9.4, Series 60 rel. 5
	CPU	ARM 11 434 MHz processor
	Messaging	SMS, MMS, Email, Push Email, IM
	Browser	WAP 2.0/xHTML, HTML, RSS feeds
	Radio	Stereo FM radio with RDS, Visual radio; FM transmitter
	Games	Yes, DJ Club Tour + downloadable
	Colors	Cherry Black, Garnet
	GPS	Yes, with A-GPS support; Nokia Maps
	Java	Yes, MIDP 2.1
		- Digital compass - MP3/WMA/WAV/eAAC+ music player - WMV/RealVideo/MP4 video player - TV-out - Voice command/dial - Document viewer (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, PDF) - Video and photo editor - Flash Lite 3 - T9

Battery		Standard battery, Li-Ion 1200 mAh (BL-4D)
	Stand-by	Up to 320 h (2G) / 310 h (3G)
	Talk time	Up to 7 h 10 min (2G) / Up to 6 h (3G)
	Music play	Up to 32 h

Sony Ericsson G705

2009-09-14T07:39:00.000-07:00

One of a kind is the last thing to call Sony Ericsson G705 upon as much as a glimpse. But conceited scoffs may be bitterly regretted. Wi-Fi, GPS and lightning fast data are likely to turn the snooty sneer into an embarrassed smirk.

Now, one of a kind may be not precisely right but the G705 is pretty darn close. The handset is only the second feature phone in the Sony Ericsson Generation Web lineup. To narrow it down even further, the G705 is only the company's second feature phone to sport both WLAN and GPS. And since the other one is proudly perched at the top of the Cybershot tree, the G705 has the midrange all to itself. What a cheeky chap!.

Sony Ericcson G705 official photos

Key features:

Quad-band GSM/GPRS/EDGE and HSDPA 7.2 Mbps/tri-band HSDPA for US version
Built-in GPS with A-GPS function, Wayfinder Navigator software, geotagging
Wi-Fi b/g with DLNA and SIP support, Bluetooth (with A2DP), USB v2.0
2.4" 256K-color TFT display
3.2 MP camera with LED flash,
Enhanced user interface with basic multi-tasking
Illuminated Web shortcut keys
Dedicated Play/Pause music key
Media Center, Smart search, Manage Messages
FM radio with RDS and TrackID
YouTube client
120 MB built-in memory, M2 card support, 1GB included

Main disadvantages:

Cheapo looking materials
No office document viewer
Video recording limited to QVGA resolution at 15fps
M2 card slot is under the battery cover

Sony Ericsson G705

A feature phone with no gaps in the spec sheet, Sony Ericsson G705 finds itself in quite a predicament. One, it's good enough to mess with the big boys (yep, that's smartphones), but second, it's cocky enough for the big boys to start messing with it.

At this point, the G705 has virtually no competition among non-OS phones. Check out our comparative table below for the kind of smartphone track the G705 will be running on. A couple of Symbian-powered Nokia devices are there for a taster of what our Sony Ericsson handset is up against.

More Sony Ericsson G705 photos

We've got a bunch of sliders there, with Wi-Fi, GPS and FM radio not even mentioned in the table, as all of them are available across the sample. Nokia E66 and Nokia N95 are all-in-one Symbian phones that, business or multimedia spin aside, easily match the main point of G705 - web browsing and connectivity. The now elderly Nokia N95 manages to even match its price tag.

Nokia 6260 slide is bigger and heavier but that's probably quite worth it, given the higher-res screen, better camera, stereo speakers and the great web browser borrowed from S60 UI. But it would be a few months before it hits the market while Sony Ericsson G705 will be enjoying a good headstart - and sets to make the best of the Christmas shopping spree. What's more, the G705 sounds notably easier on the wallet than the yet-to-be-released Nokia 6260 slide.