Filed under: Cellphones

Sprint still hasn’t quite learned the fine art of not getting shown up by CDMA rival Verizon for prompt releases of the hottest phones, partially on account of Verizon’s tendency to lock up lucrative exclusivity agreements that last anywhere from a few months to life of the model (as is the case with the CDMA Chocolate). Fortunately, as foretold by our friends at Phone Scoop, Sprint’s K1m comes relatively hot on the heels of Verizon’s. Thanks to a different UI and color scheme, the Sprint variant barely resembles its stablemates and it’ll be interesting to see whether customers ultimately do a better job warming up to it. The Sprint K1m can belong to anyone willing to part with $200 and sign on the dotted line — or, as Sprint likes to say, $399.99 minus $200 in “instant savings.”

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]

 

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BOLD MOVES: THE FUTURE OF FORD A new documentary series. Be part of the transformation as it happens in real-time

Office Depot Featured Gadget: Xbox 360 Platinum System Packs the power to bring games to life!

Filed under: Cellphones

We figure peeps who’ve placed their orders through Verizon’s site for Motorola’s new gotta-have-it clamshell need a little reading material to pass the time while they wait for the good folks in the shipping industry to make their phones materialize — so without further ado, we present PC Magazine’s take on the Motorola K1m MOTOKRZR (pictured right). While the K1m is undoubtedly a fabulous-looking flip, PC Mag seems to share the same brooding, mildly pessimistic view we do: it’s essentially a V3m in a narrower, shinier package. On the plus side, the new dimensions apparently make the phone both easier and more comfortable to hold against the ear, battery life is top-notch with just over five hours of tested talk time, and the microSD slot means many owners will be able to carry over their investments in memory expansion from prior phones. Sadly, signal strength doesn’t quite match that of its older sibling, and the UI is typical Verizon fare — no Flash here, a la the VX8500 Chocolate — though it does share the Chocolate’s tricky-to-use touch sensitive controls. In the end, it seems the K1m ends up setting the standard once again for mobile industrial design, while simultaneously managing to fall further behind in the spec sheet race.

 

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SPONSORED BY: BOLD MOVES: THE FUTURE OF FORD A new documentary series. Be part of the transformation as it happens in real-time.

Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds

Ok, you know the drill by now. HowardForums has a purported shot (on left) of the thinner, sexier successor to the VX9800 communicator, the LG VX9900 we first trolled from the FCC (pic on the right) back in May. We’re still hoping for this QWERTY clam to roll on Verizon sometime this month as reported by our own Boy Genius or sometime between September 29th and October 13th according to the rumor jockeys ridin’ the HoFo. Hell, let’s just say any day now and leave it at that mkay?

[Thanks, Scott and Sunny]

 

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SPONSORED BY: BOLD MOVES: THE FUTURE OF FORD A new documentary series. Be part of the transformation as it happens in real-time.

Filed under: Handsets, Others, GSM

Apparently looking to reach nooks and crannies of the market that haven’t yet been fully saturated, a handful of recent handsets seem to be developing genders; Alcatel’s the latest manufacturer to join the party with their “she mobile by Alcatel” OT-635a clamshell. We’re not sure whether “she mobile” is a single model or a new series of phones, but for the sake of tech-savvy women everywhere, we’re hoping it’s a series — the glossy white 635a is a bit thin in the specs, featuring GSM 850 / 1900, a VGA cam, no external display, and seemingly no Bluetooth. Personally we’ll pass, but then again, that’s exactly what Alcatel wants the men of Engadget to do.

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Filed under: Handsets, HTC, Cingular, Windows Mobile, GSM, GPRS, EDGE

Quick survey: who just sort of assumed that the Star Trek had been FCC approved for some time now? Yeah, us too. Turns out HTC's flipalicious WM5 Smartphone ("STAR100," as it's labeled here) passed muster not long ago, paving the way for Cingular to make good on its launch plans. So, if you picked up an imported unit in the past few months and you've been, uh, patiently awaiting FCC word to turn 'er on, consider this your seal of approval.

[Via phoneArena]

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Filed under: Handsets, Virgin Mobile, Kyocera, MVNOs, CDMA

Want Virgin Mobile service? Got 30 bucks? Kyocera's got you covered. The 3.5oz back-to-basics Oystr -- no "e" -- offers a color internal display, speakerphone, "Superphonic" ringtones, and that's about it. Some of us might be quickly overcome with a bad case of feature starvation, but at least the pearl white clamshell (hence the name) doesn't look half bad -- and for an honest $30 with no contract, we'll forego the typical grousing about the lack of external display.

[Thanks, Roy]

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Filed under: Handsets, Motorola, Sprint-Nextel, CDMA

If the i880 wasn’t really doing anything for you when it surfaced in the wild, perhaps this here i885 will. Motorola’s upcoming halo iDEN devices will see service on both Nextel and Boost, sporting pleather and faux snakeskin exteriors — pick your poison — and a trick button-operated flip mechanism. (If they’re going to get creative with case designs on us, we can only hope they deep-sixed the standard Nextel “beep beep” while they were letting those creative juices flow.) Besides minor cosmetic differences, the phones’ guts are presumably identical; both should be rocking 2-megapixel shooters, music players, and dual color displays. We’re getting mixed reports on whether these are CDMA hybrids, but even if they aren’t, the pair gives Nextel much-needed love in a market segment they aren’t typically accustomed to servicing.

[Via Mobile Magazine]

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Filed under: Handsets, Multimedia, Pantech

Yes, we know this looks like your garden variety Korea-only swiveling flip phone with DMB, but Pantech is making a very interesting claim about its PT-S130: it’s allegedly the first DMB phone with Bluetooth. Of course, Samsung’s been trying hard to collect every “world’s first” title under the sun, but if this thing beats Sammy’s Bluetooth / S-DMB SCH-B450 to market, Pantech’s claim might just be legit. Other features include a 2.4-inch QVGA display, stereo speakers, and 2 megapixel autofocus camera — pretty standard fare in Korea, but as usual, that doesn’t stop us yanks from drooling.

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Filed under: Handsets, Sony Ericsson, Cingular, GSM, GPRS

If you’re a Cingular customer and you’ve been jonesin’ for a Z520a with push-to-talk, your phone has arrived. Sony Ericsson’s Z525a is about an incremental upgrade as an incremental upgrade can get, offering the addition of PTT and that’s about it. As we mentioned before, EDGE would’ve been welcome, but for 20 bucks on contract with a mail-in rebate, we guess we don’t have much room to grouse about it.

[Via phoneArena]

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Filed under: Handsets, Motorola, Sprint-Nextel

Moto sure is giving its iDEN-only product line a healthy sendoff before CDMA hybrid handsets start to drop later this year. Besides the upcoming high-end i880 and the virtually indestructible (we’ll eat those words, we’re sure) i580, Nextel looks to shore up their low end by adding the i670, a basic clamshell whose main selling point appears to be its “color display.” Of course, no-frills is a big selling point among some Nextel clientele, so the phone should find its niche. Other features include Direct Talk (off-network walkie talkie) support, speakerphone, and a reasonable $49.99 price tag on two-year contract.

[Via phoneArena]

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Filed under: Handsets, Multimedia, Reviews, Sony Ericsson, GSM, GPRS, EDGE

The W300i may not be the most fascinating phone out there, but golly, it's good to see a midrange flip once in a while coming from someone besides Samsung and LG. The music-oriented W300i earned a 7.6 on CNET's 10-scale, earning praise for its "remarkable" call quality but getting knocked for its tricky button placement, lackluster VGA cam, flimsy feel (attributed to the phone's feather-like 3.3oz), and tendency to freeze for a few seconds on occasion. In our opinion, the dismal 20MB of internal storage doesn't really jive with its Walkman branding -- thankfully, the Memory Stick Micro slot is there to bail you out. No word on any US carriers picking the W300i up, but it's rockin' quadband GSM plus EDGE, so feel free to buy your own if you can stomach the $299 Sony Ericsson is asking.

[Thanks, Jen B.]

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Filed under: Handsets, Motorola, Cingular, GSM, GPRS, EDGE

If you’ve had any lingering questions about Motorola’s RAZR successor, the KRZR — aka Canary, aka RAZR 2 — you might shuffle on over to the FCC’s site and have a look-see. All the good stuff on the GSM variant has gone live, with unfettered access to external and internal pics plus a draft user’s manual. The KRZR does get honest-to-goodness EDGE which’ll be a fun experience for original V3 owners making the switch — but as Pete pointed out, it’s basically a glossy, slimmed down RAZR, so don’t expect any juicy specs buried in the documents. If by chance you still find yourself mesmerized by all that blue, glossy goodness, look for the KRZR at your friendly local Cingular outlet come this fall.

[Thanks, Handset Freak]

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Filed under: Handsets, LG, Cingular, GSM, GPRS, EDGE, HSDPA, UMTS

The handset itself might not be anything spectacular in terms of specification, but one aspect of LG's CU500 clamshell makes it extraordinarily interesting: it's North America's first retail HSDPA handset. A little private investigation on our part (meaning we called a few stores) reveals that the phone officially drops in Cingular's 3G markets tomorrow, but several persistent individuals have managed to get stores in the Boston and Atlanta areas to part with their units a day early. HowardForums has a rather active thread heralding the news, which you can read after you give your local store a call, eh?

[Thanks, The Bullfrog]

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Filed under: Handsets, Multimedia, Others, GSM

Sorry, fellas, this one's for the ladies. Philips has officially launched its 588 model in Taiwan this week, a featherweight (78g) clamshell targeted at the fairer sex. Available only in purple and white, the feminine 588 sports triband GSM, a 1.3 megapixel camera, and -- as you may have guessed from the external controls -- a music player feeding off a little over 100MB of internal storage with no expansion slot. No word on pricing for the Asia-only flip, but with its lack of Bluetooth and external display, we're guessing the 588 is designed to be a fashion phone for the masses. At least the female masses, that is.

[Via Slashphone]

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Filed under: Sony Ericsson, Misc

Just when we were ready to give the award to Samsung for the most complicated phone form factor, Sony Ericsson outdoes their Korean counterparts in a just-revealed 2004 patent application aptly titled "Flipper Phone Configuration." The concept appears to accomplish essentially the same function as a swiveling clamshell but with additional drama surrounding the conversion between modes, using a pivot point halfway up the sides of the display to allow 180-degree rotation. At least Samsung is trying to bring some additional functionality to the table with their "sliding clamshell" patent; where's the innovation here, fellas?

[Via textually.org]

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Filed under: Cellphones, Digital Cameras

With S60 3rd Edition, UMTS, a 3.2 megapixel camera with optical zoom, WiFi, miniSD slot, and QVGA display, Nokia's N93 dual-pivot clamshell pretty much does it all -- at the cost of some considerable bulk, that is. Mobile-review had a chance to spend some quality time with the beast, and if you can get past the portly 188 grams of mass in your pocket, they appear to come away liking the device for all that it does. As flimsy as it may look, we're told the stalk connecting the display to the remainder of the phone is rock-solid: "Even if you shake the phone with all your strength, there is no way the halves will move towards each other." Triband GSM plus UMTS 2100 make the N93 a tough sell in the States, but everyone else seeking out a worthy N90 replacement can expect Nokia's latest superphone to drop this month for around €600 ($765).

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Filed under: Handsets, Sanyo, Sprint-Nextel, CDMA

Some of us have had it up to here with RAZR variants, accessories, and knockoffs, but it appears slim flips are here to stay regardless of what a few grumbling Engadget editors have to say on the matter. Sprint customers looking to get in on the action without breaking the bank might look toward the Sanyo Katana, which has just been put through PC Magazine's tests and emerged with a 3.5 / 5. The reviewer digs the Katana's QVGA display, rated 4 hours of talk time, and strong reception, but takes a hit for serving up distorted sound at high volumes. Personally we'd be lost without 3G, but if the prospect of an EV-DOless Sprint phone doesn't send you running, the Katana can be yours now for a song on contract.

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Filed under: Handsets, Multimedia, Nokia, Symbian, GSM, UMTS

With S60 3rd Edition, UMTS, a 3.2 megapixel camera with optical zoom, WiFi, miniSD slot, and QVGA display, Nokia's N93 dual-pivot clamshell pretty much does it all -- at the cost of some considerable bulk, that is. Mobile-review had a chance to spend some quality time with the beast, and if you can get past the portly 188 grams of mass in your pocket, they appear to come away liking the device for all that it does. As flimsy as it may look, we're told the stalk connecting the display to the remainder of the phone is rock-solid: "Even if you shake the phone with all your strength, there is no way the halves will move towards each other." Triband GSM plus UMTS 2100 make the N93 a tough sell in the States, but everyone else seeking out a worthy N90 replacement can expect Nokia's latest superphone to drop this month for around €600 ($765).

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Filed under: Handsets, Samsung, Verizon Wireless, EV-DO, CDMA

Here's a feel-good story for all you Verizon users looking for some high-end love: the SGH-A990, Samsung's 3.2-megapixel object of desire chock full o' swiveling QVGA and EV-DO goodness, has officially dropped on your network. Bluetooth -- sans A2DP as best we can tell -- and a microSD slot (for those gargantuan pictures you'll be snapping) are also in the package, but getting yourself atop the Verizon food chain ain't cheap: the A990 will run you $349.99 on two-year contract with a $50 rebate.

[Via Mobiledia]

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Filed under: Handsets, Reviews, Samsung, GSM

Considering what Samsung has managed to do with 9.9mm, we're struggling to understand how they're just now trying to position the tri-band SGH-P858 as their crown jewel -- all brick-like 26.5mm of it. Nonetheless, it's worthy of a review, and that's just what our counterparts at MobileBurn have undertaken. You might recall mention of the P857 earlier this year, and we're told these phones are functionally identical, which means the 3 megapixel camera carries over -- as does the, uh, pleather coating on the phone's surface. MobileBurn's reaction to the phone is overall a negative one, panning the lack of multitasking support, sluggish microSD access, lack of simultaneous vibrate and ring, and generally exorbitant price tag considering its spec sheet. Check a couple more shots of the P858 doing its thing after the break.

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Filed under: Handsets, UTStarcom, GSM, CDMA

The dual-mode concept is a big deal in Asia where carriers like China Mobile have both GSM and CDMA networks floating around, and it looks like UTStarcom wants to cash in with its T66 clamshell. The press release claims the T66 sports not one, but two 2.6-inch displays (we’re having a hard time picturing that), music player, 1.3 megapixel camera, and “MP3 broadcasting” and is destined for China Mobile’s World Wind dual-mode service. The T66′s major selling point is apparently its ability to stand by on both networks simultaneously, a feature missing from first-generation World Wind devices. No word on availability outside China, which doesn’t necessarily break our hearts – but we have to admit, we’re a little curious about the “MP3 broadcasting” feature. An FM transmitter, perhaps?

[Via Mobilewhack]

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Filed under: Handsets, LG, Cingular, GSM, GPRS

There are definitely LGs we'd rather see appear in Cingular's shipping lineup, but hey, the quad-band CG225 is free on contract after online rebate, has a VGA camera, dual color displays, and a speakerphone. The stub antenna is unfortunate, but all told the little clamshell doesn't look half bad -- and it's hard to complain about the price. Cheap backup phone, anyone?

[Via MobileTracker]

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Filed under: Handsets, Samsung, Sprint-Nextel, CDMA

The A640 isn’t new to us, nor is the fact that it’s coming to Sprint, but we thought we’d pay this flip another visit now that it’s gone all official on us. We’ve heard rumors that it packs Bluetooth 2.0, but otherwise the feature list is pretty uneventful, with a VGA camera and Ready Link support in the package. If the A640 speaks to you in ways that other Samsung flips simply haven’t, it’s available for $49.99 on contract from your friendly Sprint outlet.

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Filed under: Handsets, Others, Linux

Sure, they're common in Asia where the lack of licensing fees is a huge draw for manufacturers, but we've yet to see the promise of real, honest-to-goodness Linux smartphone action go big here in the States. A couple of Chinese firms might be looking to help us change that. E28 (yep, the name of the company is "E28") has gotten FCC blessing for its Faraday-esque candybar packing a 2 megapixel camera, MicroSD slot, touch screen, and WiFi. The "hipi" clamshell by Paragon lacks any keypad and trades the MicroSD slot for one of the MiniSD variety. Both devices appear to rock VoIP clients, as well. If E28 can lose the sickly mauve color, we'd be more than happy to review a unit. You listening, guys?

[Via phoneArena]

Read - E28
Read - Paragon PW1010

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Filed under: Handsets, Samsung, GSM, GPRS, EDGE

The SGH-E380 has popped up courtesy of the FCC with precisely nothing interesting about it: Bluetooth, 1.3 megapixel camera, dual color displays, music player, and EDGE support round out the completely typical spec sheet. Strangely, the FCC lists this as a single-band GSM 1900 device, but they also make mention of an SGH-E388 sister product that might be more friendly to American frequencies. If you, for whatever reason, thought that there weren't enough midrange Samsung clamshells in the pipeline, hopefully we've made your day.

[Via Slashphone]

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