Motorola launches new Wi-Fi-enabled handset with Kodak

BEIJING, CHINA--Motorola today announced a new mobile phone and no prizes for guessing which it is. Yup, it's the leaked and much rumored ZINE ZN5, which was developed with American imaging giant Kodak.

The ZINE is a new "multimedia-optimized" lineup from the company. Besides GSM, the phone is Wi-Fi-enabled to let users surf the Web via a full HTML browser or upload their images to various picture-sharing Web sites. It incorporates the firm's proprietary CrystalTalk technology which enhances call quality even in noisy environments.

On the imaging front, the device features a 5-megapixel sensor, Xenon flash, autofocus and an expansion slot to ramp up the memory to 4GB. Hardware aside, the phone also ships with Kodak's Perfect Touch Technology which, combined with Kodak Imaging Technology, promises brighter and more vivid pictures.

The ZINE ZN5 will be available in China from July. Price and availability for other parts of Asia have yet to be confirmed, but we will update once we get the information.

Bluetooth headset has a frickin' laser pointer

We're convinced this gadget was invented by Dr Evil fans simply for the shark references: It's a Bluetooth headset from Brando (of course) that comes with a built-in laser pointer.

It actually could come handy for PowerPoint presentations, though we'd recommend taking it off your ear before using the pointer to avoid looking like a trained seal. As for the headset, it has a range of 10m and talktime of 6 hours, according to Gadget Venue. And it comes with an integrated LED flashlight as well because Brando can't resist cramming in as many functions as humanly possible in all its products.

Via CNET Crave

Ferrari phone--almost the real thing

Remember the shameless phone that tried to pull a Ferrari stunt? Forget that. Here's the almost real deal--the Moto RAZR2 V9 Ferrari Special Edition. Granted that differences between this and the original RAZR2 V9 are purely cosmetic, but at least you won't be on the receiving end of stifled giggles. In case you are worried people can't tell you are using a special-edition phone, the top LCD will show a big Ferrari logo when the phone is open. And if they still don't get it, show them you mean business by playing the racing car ringtones on repeat. More hands-on pictures after the break!
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Cell phones to measure blood sugar levels?

Three groups including Georgetown University teamed up mid this week to develop a new way to measure the glucose levels of diabetes patients without a finger prick to draw their blood.

The technique involves the use of disposable skin patches (embedded with a wireless sensor chip) that can monitor glucose levels, and then transmit that information to a cell phone. With the data, the mobile phone could conceivably control an insulin pump remotely, according to the researchers.

The organizations involved in the project are Georgetown, Gentag, and Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC), a technology development company. Also a tech research firm, Gentag has developed an RFID-sensor reader platform for cell phones. And with funding from the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, researchers from Georgetown and SAIC created the skin patch technology, initially to monitor soldiers on the battlefield.

As part of their agreement, the groups will combine their respective intellectual property to develop the new application for diabetes patients. The patches will be able to monitor patients' blood every hour for a 24-hour period, and transmit that data to a device that's already familiar to many diabetes patients. The phones also include geolocation technology in the case of an emergency.

"We expect that this new, painless, disposable, wireless glucose sensor technology will significantly improve diabetes monitoring worldwide," Gentag President John Peeters said in a statement.

The organizations did not set a specific launch time for the technology.

Via CNET News

AT&T paying Apple US$325 per iPhone 3G?

According to one financial analyst, AT&T is paying Apple US$325 in subsidies on each iPhone 3G.

Barron's Tech Trader Daily spotted a report from Oppenheimer's Yair Reiner that claims Apple will wind up getting just as much revenue from the subsidies as it did from the revenue-sharing agreement between Apple and AT&T that was in place before the introduction of the iPhone 3G last week. Reiner notes that this figure is far more than the typical US$200 subsidy most carriers pay to reduce the price of other smartphones, and it's supplemented by a US$100-per-new-subscriber bounty paid to Apple for each new AT&T customer that signs up in an Apple store.

Apple and AT&T unveiled a new pricing scheme for the iPhone 3G after the device itself was given the standard Apple keynote treatment during the first day of Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference. The 8GB iPhone 3G will cost US$199, and the 16GB version will cost US$299: US$200 cheaper than the original version after AT&T agreed to subsidize the price.

The actual price of the iPhone doesn't matter to most people, but certain AT&T customers who might not be eligible for the upgrade price of US$199 or US$299 will likely have to pay the unsubsidized price--or something close to it-- for the iPhone 3G. Current iPhone owners are eligible for the US$199 price, as are new AT&T customers, but some AT&T customers who use another smartphone and have been with the carrier for a short time might have to pay the higher price.

And it matters to AT&T, obviously. The company raised the price of its iPhone data plans by US$10 a month to offset the subsidies it's paying to Apple. AT&T is throwing an awful lot of cash at Apple from the start, rather than on an ongoing basis as was the case with the revenue-sharing agreement. Still, the heavy subsidies will be worth it if iPhone 3Gs start flying off the shelves on July 11.

Via CNET Crave

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