Philips phone plays a different tune in China

As the mobile phone industry churns out new handsets every day, the opportunities to distance a product from the massive pack can seem infinitesimal. For that reason Philips deserves some credit for trying some new tricks on the Chinese market.

Its latest offering, the M600, attempts to capitalize on the continuing evolution toward music devices with a design that looks almost more like a media player than a phone. Not only does it have a giant play button just above the keypad, according to SlashPhone, but it also features MP3 hotkeys, 40 hours of playback, and the same "SRS WOW" equalizer technology that's featured in Bang & Olufsen's high-end "Serenata" music phone.

Other features of the GSM candy bar handset include a 2-inch display, 1.3-megapixel camera, microSD card slot, Bluetooth, and Java game support. The phone is available only in China at the moment but hints that it may be headed for other lands because it accepts text in English, French, Russian, and Turkish.

Via CNET Crave

Nokia announces glossy trio of handsets

After a pair of new XpressMusic handsets last week, Nokia today unveiled another three more devices: The 6600 fold, 6600 slide and 3600 slide.

The Finnish giant is marketing these three phones as "beautiful to use" even though we think they look just like your regular handsets. According to Aki Laine, the man responsible for the 6600 fold, the clamshell phone is designed to fit the contours of your face (which sounds like the "banana" phone some years back) and there's no need to manually open the clamshell (there's a dedicated button to do that). The pictures of the 6600 slide, on the other hand, remind us of the current N81. Both the 6600 models feature a "tapping" function which can be used to silence and reject incoming calls, for instance.

The 3600 slide is supposedly the first Nokia phone to feature background noise cancellation and packs a 3.2-megapixel AF camera with dual LED flash lights and TV-out connectivity.

All three phones are expected to be available in Asia in Q3.

Camera-less Nokia E51 now available

We wrote about the non-camera version of the Nokia E51 back in February, and apparently, the handset is available now through MobileOne in Singapore. The camera-less model costs S$538 (S$20 cheaper than the original E51) without contract or S$148 if you sign a two-year plan with the operator. We are still waiting to hear from Nokia the regional availability of this E51 and will update when we know.

Vertu phones honor its favorite subject--itself

Having created such specimens as the US$310,000 Signature Cobra, it's not surprising that Vertu is a brand that isn't afraid to celebrate itself. So even though it's already released one special line marking its 10th anniversary this year, there's nothing to stop them from doing one more.

To that end, the luxury handset maker has unveiled its Rococo Constellation, also in honor of its first decade, following the Monogram Constellation that did the same thing. As indicated by its name, the new collection was inspired by the French design movement of the 18th century, according to Sybarites.

Oddly enough, these models seem surprisingly subdued considering their maker and mission. On closer inspection, however, the Sapphire Edition of the collection features cabochon sapphire screws, as well as a center stone button. Say what you will about Vertu, but at least they're consistent.

Via Crave CNET

LG Secret no longer a secret

It's official. The third model in the LG Black Label series after the Shine and Chocolate is a Secret. We don't mean we are not telling. It is really a Secret. No, really.

For the number-crunching folks, the Secret is also known as the KF750. Like the Viewty that came before it, the KF750 comes with a 5-megapixel camera with 120fps video recording and DivX playback capability. The difference is the Korean chaebol managed to shave off an additional 3mm on the KF750 (11.8mm), making it the slimmest LG 5-megapixel camera-phone yet. It still can't beat the 10.5mm-thin Sony Ericsson C902, though.

Other things to look out for at the June launch in Asia are the front touchscreen LCD made from tempered glass which LG claims is scratch-resistant and a 3D-patterned carbon fiber back. And don't say we told you. It's a secret.

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