Rumor alert: Sony Ericsson K800i

Recent pictures of a Sony Ericsson phone posted on a German blog site have further added fuel to rumors that the Japanese-Swedish mobile company may be unveiling a K800i handset at its launch Tuesday. According to the specifications provided on several enthusiast sites, the supposed K800i phone, codenamed "Wilma", will come with a 3.2-megapixel camera and sport a slide-down lens cover similar to the Cyber-shot T-series digicams.

Other key highlights of the phone are rumored to be a 2-inch QVGA (320 x 240 pixels) screen, FM tuner, 3G and Memory Stick Micro slot. Camera features such as 16x digital zoom, red-eye reduction and image stabilizer are said to be onboard the phone.

Rumors also have it that Sony Ericsson will unveil a new Walkman handset, the W530, at the same time as the K800i. This clamshell unit is said to come with a Memory Stick Micro slot for memory expansion and dedicated music playback buttons.

We have not been able to get any official confirmations from Sony Ericsson. Watch this space for when the launch details come through.

Motorola to release gold RAZR and pink V3x

The wait is finally over for Motorola RAZR fans who have been eagerly waiting to get hold of the limited-edition gold V3i. According to Motorola, there are plans to release a gold version of the RAZR in the second quarter of 2006. At press time, we were unable to confirm if the gold RAZR would be a V3 or V3i model. If it is a gold V3 clamshell, this will be the fifth color available for the handset, following earlier releases of silver, black, pink and blue versions.

In the meantime, Motorola representatives also shared with CNET Asia news on the launch of a pink V3x. This is expected to be released together with the 3G-enabled blue V3x within the next couple of months.

Update: According to Motorola, the blue RAZR V3x will be launched first, followed by the pink version at a later date. The company has also confirmed that the gold RAZR that will be introduced later this year (not the limited-edition set with D&G) will be a V3i model.

Motorola's RAZR V3x gets "Best 3GSM Handset" award

The ultra-slim 3G-enabled clamshell has been named the "Best 3GSM Handset" at this year's 3GSM World Congress event awards ceremony. An enhanced 3G version of the company's popular RAZR series, the V3x is the first handset from Motorola to win the award given by the GSM Association, according to Ron Garriques, President of Motorola Mobile Devices.

Also receiving honors at the ceremony is Nokia for its 8800 which took home the award for "Best GSM Handset" while the Nokia N70 was named "Highly Commended" in the 3GSM category. Nokia scored a hat trick when its CEO, Jorma Ollila, was given the GSM Association Chairman's award.

Phobile

Mobile convergence takes a strange twist here, with the Phobile being an old-style rotary dial handset that plugs into a handphone. The point? None actually. The Phobile looks chunky enough to be deployed as a self-defence weapon, and will probably be more of a handful than a handsfree. Totally daft, but at least nobody can mistake when you're on the phone.

Price: 19.95 pounds (US$35.75)
Availability: From Firebox
Device: Handset peripheral
Basic specs: For phones that are compatible, click here, comes with five adapters

Make a movie with mobile phones

South African movie director Aryan Kaganof recently made what is possibly the first feature film shot entirely using cellular phones. Called SMS Sugar Man, this low-budget movie was filmed using eight Sony Ericsson W900i handsets on a budget of less than 1 million rand (US$164,000). Traditionally, most low-budget films cost about 6 million rand (US$984,000) to produce.

According to a news report, the film, which tells the tale of a pimp and two high-class prostitutes cruising around Johannesburg on Christmas eve, includes newcomers Deja Bernhardt and Leigh Graves as well as Kaganof in the lead roles. SMS Sugar Man took 11 days to shoot and will be distributed via mobile phone in 30 3-minute epsiodes over a month, in addition to cinema screenings.

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