Filed under: Cellphones

Life is like some wonderful dream for Treo lovers lately, with the quad-band 680 getting FCC approval just one day after the agency gave the 750 a thumbs up. With all the formalities complete, expect this everyman’s Treo to hit Cingular any day now at price points you’re probably well aware of. So if you haven’t decided what color you’re gonna go with yet, this is just a friendly reminder that it’s coming down to the wire…

 

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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, Handhelds

Nokia gets the lion’s share of the attention when it comes to the S60 platform and Symbian generally — perhaps rightfully so, considering they ship far more Symbian-based smartphones than any other vendor — but Samsung would like to politely remind everyone that they’re an S60 licensee, too. Their latest effort, the SGH-i520 slider, had its coming-out party this week at the Symbian Smartphone Show, and the spec sheet looks to give Nokia’s E- and N-series multimedia powerhouses an honest-to-goodness run for their money. The typical 2-megapixel camera and QVGA display aside, the i520 packs an HSDPA radio — something no released Nokia handset has managed to do; granted, the N95 does it, but we’ve got a little wait ahead of us for that monster. Lucky owners also get a microSD slot should they find the 45MB of usable storage a bit light, Bluetooth 2.0 with A2DP, and a front-facing VGA shooter for those ever-popular video calls. Per protocol, it doesn’t seem that a US launch is in the works, but one can never be sure; stranger things have happened.

 

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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

Filed under: Cellphones, Peripherals

Mobility Electronics has launched the latest in its line of Stowaway portable keyboards under its Think Outside brand, the Bluetooth-based Stowaway Sierra. Ok, so it’s not quite as catchily-named as the Stowaway Shasta, but it does look to be a fair bit more versatile, compatible with Windows Mobile 5, Pocket PC, Palm and Symbian-based devices (with Bluetooth, of course), as well as Windows XP and Mac OS X, for anyone that finds their full-size desktop keyboard a little too comfortable. Unlike some portable keyboards, the Stowaway Sierra packs decently-sized 19mm keys, including dedicated numeric keys and shortcut keys for your smartphone, PDA, or Windows XP — yet it still manages to fold up into pocketable (depending on the pocket) 5.0 x 3.5 x 0.9-inch package. You can snag this one now for $129.99.

 

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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, GPS, Handhelds

All four of these phones have had their fair share of leaks, but now HTC is ready to fess up and assign some names to their Q4 lineup of phones, which is all set to bust up on Europe this fall. Starting from the left we’ve got the S3300, codenamed Artemis, which is due for an October launch, and features TomTom software to power the GPS action, along with a 2.8-inch screen and a snazzy new “RollRTM” trackball / track wheel. The P3600 (aka Trinity) picks up where the Prophet and Magician left off with a bit of bulk, some cute looks, but sadly no QWERTY action. The phone does, however, manage HSDPA speeds and a 2 megapixel camera, so it won’t be all tears when this thing drops in September. Next we have the Q-killin’ “Excalibur” S620, which measures a mere 0.5-inches thick, weighs 4.6 ounces, and manages that lovable QWERTY keyboard and 2.4-inch screen. The phone, due for an October launch, will also come with quad band GPRS/EDGE (3G is conspicuously absent), WiFi and Bluetooth connectivity. Finally, HTC’s S310 “Oxygen” candybar isn’t anything too terribly interesting, but it’s a nice new look for HTC candybar fans who found the HTC Breeze to be a bit too squarish. The S310 should be out this September. Possibly the best news among all this action is that it seems HTC has decided to abandon the frightening naming convention they adopted for the “TyTN” and “MTeoR.” That was a slippery slope if we ever saw one. The worst news is, of course, HTC is only self-branding these phones in Europe right now, and will be letting US carriers adulterate these phones with garish branding and spec drops before we ever get a chance at ‘em. Oh well, such is life. Keep reading for entirely-too-large pr0n of all four phones at their shiniest.

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]

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Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds

Announced way back in February 2005, ROAD has been promising this Handy-PC Linux dreamphone of theirs for a while now, and even stated in late 2005 that they’d have it out by Q1 2006. Well, it still hasn’t materialized, but their new concept version of the phone looks a tad snazzier and a bit more for-reals. The specs haven’t really gone anywhere, it’s still a QWERTZ clamshell with Bluetooth, WiFi, quad-band GSM/GPRS/EDGE and a 640 x 240 display. When closed the unit acts like a slightly chunky candybar (pictured after the break) — ala Nokia 9300 — with a 102 x 65 monochrome display. What’s new is a fleshed out Qtopia GUI (the Handy-PC was still running Windows screenshots back when we saw it last), which looks functional, if a tad busy. The device is powered by a 400MHz Xscale CPU, and comes in two flavors: the S101 and S101K, the latter of which adds a 2 megapixel camera and encryption of some sort. You can “advance order” your very own Handy-PC right now, but since there’s no word on when it will be available, or for how much, we figure we’re in for a bit of a wait yet.

[Via El Reg]

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Filed under: Culture, Handsets, Others, Windows Mobile, GSM

If your dreams have been haunted by visions of VIPN's $300,000 Black Diamond but the thought of mortgaging a cell phone wasn't really sitting too well with you, might we direct your attention to the Black Diamond's less-costly sibling, the White Pearl. At "just" $1,500, the White Pearl's price should be music to the ears of folks who are merely rich -- you get the same Jaren Goh design in white instead of black and you lose the diamonds, but the rest of the specs remain the same. Heck, you even still get the 2GB SD card bundled in the box. We weren't able to track down the White Pearl on VIPN's site, but if this all checks out, look for the nifty candybar to drop about the same time as its bejeweled counterpart in early 2007.

[Via I4U News]

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Filed under: Cellphones, Laptops, Wireless

Proving that corporate agendas sometimes can’t be put aside long enough to create a unified computing platform for the world’s poor, Microsoft has unveiled “FonePlus,” a concept device making good on its proposal to use smartphones as the basis for sending computers deep into emerging markets. Unfortunately we’ve been unable to dig up any eye candy, but FonePlus looks to follow Gates’ formula pretty closely: you get a CE-based smartphone (likely watered down from the full Windows Mobile package) with TV out and an external keyboard connection. The logic behind FonePlus suggests that phones and televisions are pervasive even in some of the world’s poorest regions, making the product an easy sell — plus, Internet access is part and parcel with the phone, something OLPC doesn’t provide out of the box. Whether FonePlus will see production remains to be seen, but Microsoft’s studying the idea closely — and when you get snubbed by OLPC in favor of Linux, well, it’s no surprise to see them come out swinging.

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Filed under: Culture, Handsets, Others, Misc

Proving that corporate agendas sometimes can’t be put aside long enough to create a unified computing platform for the world’s poor, Microsoft has unveiled “FonePlus,” a concept device making good on its proposal to use smartphones as the basis for sending computers deep into emerging markets. Unfortunately we’ve been unable to dig up any eye candy, but FonePlus looks to follow Gates’ formula pretty closely: you get a CE-based smartphone (likely watered down from the full Windows Mobile package) with TV out and an external keyboard connection. The logic behind FonePlus suggests that phones and televisions are pervasive even in some of the world’s poorest regions, making the product an easy sell — plus, Internet access is part and parcel with the phone, something OLPC doesn’t provide out of the box. Whether FonePlus will see production remains to be seen, but Microsoft’s studying the idea closely — and when you get snubbed by OLPC in favor of Linux, well, it’s no surprise to see them come out swinging.

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Filed under: Culture, Handsets, Others, Windows Mobile, GSM

If you’re having a hard time justifying dropping a cool million on your next phone, might we turn your attention to the “Black Diamond,” brought to us by Swiss manufacturer VIPN. Penned by Singaporean designer Jaren Goh, there’s little question that the glossy black candybar is gorgeous — but whether it’s $300,000 gorgeous is another question entirely. Details are slim, but we know that the Windows Mobile 5 device should be rocking quadband GSM, WiFi, 128MB of memory with SD expansion, a 2-inch display, and a 400MHz XScale all wrapped up in titanium and diamonds. The touch sensitive keypad is Chocolate-esque, completely disappearing when not lit, while SIP is thrown in to keep your GSM usage minimum when you’re in WiFi range (not to suggest anyone owning this phone is looking to save a few bucks). If we’ve piqued your interest, it looks like you’ve got until early 2007 to save your pennies, but keep your eyes peeled — production is limited to 5 (yes, five) units.

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Filed under: Handsets, Motorola, Verizon Wireless, Windows Mobile, EV-DO, Studies, CDMA, Misc

iSuppli's back doing what they do best -- ripping apart your favorite piece of hardware, adding up the component costs, and letting you know how much you're getting taken when you whip out the plastic. Today's victim is Motorola's text-tastic Q, and though the margins are pretty slim, it looks like Moto and Verizon are in the black on every unit they push. All told, iSupply totals the cost of the Q's guts to be $150; tack on another $8 for manufacturing and you're looking at $158 out the door. The most expensive component, not surprisingly, is the device's 320 x 240 display at $25, with memory and the XScale rounding out the top three. If you've invested in one of these bad boys lately you know that Verizon's charging $199 on a two-year contract, meaning that in the worst case, the two companies are splitting $41 -- and if you opt for a one-year at $349, well, they're just rolling in fat city.

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Filed under: Handsets, Reviews, Samsung, Windows Mobile, GSM, GPRS, EDGE, UMTS

Slim, wide, full keyboard-packin' WM5 Smartphones might be out and about this side of the pond, but our European friends have yet to get in on the Motorola Q -- making Samsung's release of the i320 even more interesting for them, not to suggest there aren't a few Americans that'll be reading PPCReviews' first impression with bated breath. Unfortunately, the outcome isn't exactly a love fest, with the reviewers knocking the i320's sluggish response, odd speakerphone positioning, under-battery microSD slot and lackluster camera. On the positive side, well, it's a WM5 Smartphone with a full keyboard if you're into that sort of thing, and the QVGA display gets high marks. They were also a bit confused about the inclusion of two batteries, suggesting that the i320 might eat some serious power. We'll wait for a couple more reviews before issuing a final judgment, but the HSDPA Q is looking better every day.

[Via Smartphone Thoughts]

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Filed under: Handsets, Palm, Vodafone, Windows Mobile, GSM, UMTS

So Palm has officially announced one of those three Treos we were promised at the end of last year, and just as we expected, this Windows Mobile 5 AKU2-powered model will be sold exclusively overseas. Unfortunately the company neglected to include a detailed spec sheet in its press release — more information will be available closer to the as-yet-unspecified launch date — so all we really know at this point is that it’s destined for Vodafone’s 3G UMTS network in several European countries. Also unclear is how this model relates to other upcoming Treos we’ve seen under such codenames as Hollywood, Lowrider, Nitro, and Lennon — we sure wish Palm would be a little more forthcoming with its product roadmaps. As usual, though, you can always count on us to bring you every little bit of Treo news we get our hands on, even if Palm and friends don’t give us much help putting it in context.

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]

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Filed under: Handsets, Others, Symbian, NTT DoCoMo, UMTS

Fashion phones not your cup of tea? Looking for something a little more business oriented perhaps? NTT DoCoMo has you covered with their D702iBCL FOMA smartphone, brought to you by the good folks at Mitsubishi. The D702iBCL sports NTT’s MOAP (Moblie Oriented Applications Platform) UI sitting atop Symbian 8.1 along with a QVGA display, all while coming in at a relatively sprightly 130 x 47 x 16.8mm and 97g. A camera is conspicuously missing, but being that this is a business phone, that’s just as well.

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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: Cellphones, Handhelds

We've just spotted what purports to be the HTC Trinity, and while it's looking quite a bit different (and a bit less sleek) than the last time it surfaced, the specs are just as spiffing. The Windows Mobile 5.0 actually doesn't look too much different than HTC's Hermes, with the main addition of GPS and some reworked face buttons. There's 64MB of RAM, 128MB of ROM, a 2.8-inch QVGA display, Bluetooth, WiFi, EDGE, HSDPA and a microSD slot. Just like the Hermes there are VGA and 2.0 megapixel cameras, and the phone is similarly slim at 0.7-inches thick. No more info as to when this will be out, and we can't say we aren't disappointed about the fairly generic look, but there's always a chance (hope) this report is a bit off.

[Thanks, Sean]

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Filed under: Handsets, Okwap, Windows Mobile, GSM, GPRS

Despite the seemingly exponential popularity of sliders over the past couple years, Windows Mobile Smartphones have seen shockingly little action in the form factor (heck, even Pocket PCs have managed to join the party). Taiwan's OKWAP is looking to change all that, parading their adorable little K728 at this year's Computex. The tri-band GSM device (sorry, yanks) sports some unusual specs for a Smartphone, including a 400MHz Samsung core, generous 128MB of flash, 2.0 megapixel camera, MiniSD slot, AKU2 with all the trimmings (A2DP included), and a 220 x 176 touchscreen. Yes, that's right, a touchscreen -- Smartphone doesn't officially get down like that, so we're assuming OKWAP rolled their own touch support. Given the unusually healthy spec sheet, you might be led to believe this Smartphone is secretly aspiring to be a Pocket PC, but the K728's diminutive 93.5 x 46 x 24.5mm and 107.8g weight suggest otherwise. More not-for-US-release eye candy after the break.

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Filed under: Handsets, Others

Gigabyte is showing off two new Windows Mobile 5.0 smartphones at Computex in Taiwan this week, the g-Smart i120 and g-Smart i300. The i300 appears to be a slightly modified version of what was previously just known as the g-Smart i, a tri-band device (no EDGE, sadly), packing 64MB of RAM, 256MB of ROM, 802.11g, Bluetooth 2.0, GPS, a 2 megapixel camera, 2.4-inch QVGA screen, as well as a MiniSD slot and an FM tuner; what's not clear if it supports the same crazy rabbit ears for TV reception as the other g-Smart we saw a couple of months ago. The i120 takes a different approach, featuring a built-in keypad, but the specs are pretty similar otherwise, with tri-band GSM (900 / 1800 / 1900) and GPRS, 64MB RAM, 256MB ROM, 802.11g, Bluetooth (just 1.2 on this one), infrared, a 2.4-inch QVGA display, 2 megapixel camera, and, it seems, a TV tuner in addition to the FM (no evidence of rabbit ears though). Check the read link below for some more pics courtesy of Phone Daily.

[Via Pocket PC Thoughts]

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Filed under: Handsets, Others

We've gotta hand it to AnexTEK, not only are they keepin' it real fake with their new moboDA 3380 and 3160 smartphones, they're showing off their "designs" at a major tradeshow, Computex, where they may well run into a few companies who can be forgiven for thinking that AnexTEK's been swiping things from their booths when they weren't looking. The 3380 (which bears more than a passing resemblance to BenQ's P51), is the more capable of the two, with built-in WiFi, Bluetooth, GPS, a 2 megapixel camera, and a speedy Intel PXA270 520 MHz processor. As you can see, it also has a full QWERTY keyboard. The 3160 (taking cues from HP's RW6828, itself an XDA Atom rebadge), lacks a keyboard and packs a slightly slower Intel PXA270 416 MHz processor, along with a 1.3 megapixel camera, and integrated WiFi and Bluetooth 1.2. No word on price, and (surpise!) they're not likely to be available outside of Taiwan anytime soon.

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Filed under: Handsets, Multimedia, HTC, Windows Mobile, GSM, GPRS

Well, that didn't take long. Just a couple weeks ago, we didn't know what the heck the HTC Oxygen was, and now we have some shots of HTC's freshest candybar Windows Mobile 2005 Smartphone doing its thing. PocketPT.net is reporting 64MB of RAM, 64MB of ROM, a 220 x 176 display, 1.3 megapixel camera, and a 201MHz OMAP850. Fairly pedestrian specs for an as-yet-unreleased HTC smartphone, but according to our sources, we believe they missed a crucial line item: some sort of mobile TV support (though we're not sure what standard). HTC tends to be good about quad-banding their GSM devices, so let's all hold hands and wish for this bundle of joy to cross the pond.

[Via Smartphone Thoughts]

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Filed under: Handsets, Motorola, Verizon Wireless, Windows Mobile, EV-DO, CDMA

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Filed under: Handsets, HTC

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Filed under: Handsets, Nokia, Sharp, Vodafone, Symbian, GSM, UMTS

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Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds

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Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds

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