Posts in Mobile Phones
Nokia shows us the door
John Chan | Aug 29, 2007
Mobile phone giant Nokia has announced Ovi, a platform for its trio of Internet services. Ovi means door in Finnish, representing its purpose as a gateway to Nokia's new music store, maps and N-Gage services.
Ovi will go live during the fourth quarter of 2007 in English, and Nokia expects to launch it in other languages in the first half of 2008. Of the three services that will be available, the Nokia Music Store is the only completely new item. The other two, N-Gage and Nokia Maps, have existed in other forms within the company's portfolio previously, though they will now come with an online element.
According to Nokia, there will be tracks for sale at its music store from Universal Music Group which represents many popular artists like Def Leppard, Luciano Pavarotti and U2. Other yet unnamed labels have also signed on, and the company said there will be millions of tracks available for sale after its launch.
Currently, the dominant force in online music sales is Apple's iTunes Music Store. The iTunes application sells music, videos and games for iPods. Nokia's range of services with Ovi is very similar, though its N-Gage service seems to be a much more important part of Ovi than iPod games are to iTunes. An important aspect of Nokia's Music Store is that it can be accessed from a mobile phone. Tracks can be bought over the cellular network, which is still something that can't be done using Apple's iPhone for iTunes purchase.
The N-Gage was Nokia's range of gaming phones which discontinued in late 2005. The name is now used for its new gaming service which will serve up games for various Nokia Series 60 handsets. The N81, also announced today, is one such mobile phone designed to improve the gaming experience with its button orientation. More on the new N-Gage here.
eGear portable power saves lives
Damian Koh | Aug 29, 2007
Okay, we're kidding. We haven't heard of actual cases although it may be fully capable of saving lives in distress. Think about it, a hapless chap trapped in the wilderness with a lifeless phone and, strangely, a portable charger as well. You never know, shit happens and times like these you'll appreciate having a portable battery pack to juice up your mobile. And if carrying a USB-powered rechargeable isn't your cup of tea, the S-220 solar battery pack might. Now all you need is the sky to clear.
Three models are available: The UB-180, UB-181 and S-220. The UB-series cost S$89 each, while the S-220 goes for a hefty S$199. For that price, you get a USB/DC cable, camera connectors and mobile phone connectors compatible with most of the major phone brands.
Porsche's phone ready for starting flag
Mike Yamamoto | Aug 28, 2007
Considering how much publicity is given to high-profile phones these days, it's surprising that more hasn't been said about Porsche's entry into the handset race. That all could change soon, however, as the phone's launch apparently isn't too far off.
Pocket-lint says the 3G mobile handset will make its UK debut in November, sporting a touch screen, a 3.2-megapixel camera, an MP3 player and, as we reported earlier, fingerprint-recognition security. Perhaps most impressive, Porsche's "concierge service" will handle any issues to arise with the handset.
Of course, all this comes at the premium price of 800 pounds, or just under US$1,600. For that kind of money, they should at least throw in a free oil change.
Via CNET Crave
Sony Ericsson's new designer phone
Reuben Lee | Aug 24, 2007
It looks like the designer bug has finally caught up with Sony Ericsson. Its recently launched T650i takes a leaf out of the books of previous premium offerings such as the Nokia 8800. And like the latter, the T650i features a scratch-resistant mineral glass cover for its display and stainless steel casing. Adding to the uniqueness of the phone is an illumination effect that goes from the display to the keypad.
However, unlike most premium designer handsets out there, the T650i offers quite an extensive feature set. These include a 3.2-megapixel camera with autofocus and LED light, 3G connectivity, A2DP Bluetooth stereo, FM radio with RDS, memory card expansion and an onboard media player. What really stands out is the unit's 12.5mm slim profile, which should go well with the fashion set.
As expected of a designer phone, the T650i, which will be available in Glowing Green and Midnight Blue, is premium priced at
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In this case, the devil wears 24k gold
Mike Yamamoto | Aug 24, 2007
Just for the record, iPods aren't the only gadgets that can be covered in diamonds or dipped in gold. GeekSugar says Amosu, which gave us the gold iPod, has veered beyond Apple products and applied its 24k gilding brush to LG's Prada phone for just under US$1,000. It's not the first time that Amosu has branched out, of course, given that it's promised to customize just about anything for the right price (or the wrong one, depending on your point of view). But don't worry, it still has more than a little ways to go before catching up with the US$1.3 million "Diamond Crypto Smartphone".
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