All4SmartPhone.com

[#48] First Cellphone with Hard Drive

The SPH-V5400 is a clam-shell type phone and the hard drive can store 1.5GB.

Samsung Electronics Unveils the First Mobile Phone with Hard Drive. BUSAN, Korea – September 7, 2004: Samsung Electronics unveiled the first-ever mobile phone (model: SPH-V5400) with an internal hard disc drive. The company’s latest innovation, which also comes with a mega-pixel camera, is currently being exhibited at the ITU Telecom Asia 2004 from September 6 to 11 at the Busan Exhibition and Conference Center (BEXCO).

The V5400 is equipped with a 1-inch diagonal, 1.5GB hard disc drive that greatly expands the memory capacity of mobile phones from the conventional 100MB maximum capacity. In addition, the phone boasts a high-resolution (QVGA) 2.2-inch liquid crystal display and includes features, such as MP3 player, electronic book and Korean-English/English-Korean dictionaries. A powerful microphone enhances the camcorder function, while dual speakers provide a 3D sound effect.

The breakthrough product will be available for Korean consumers in mid-September.

[#49] Orange Launches Talk Now

Orange announced the commercial availability of Talk Now™, Europe’s first advanced Push-To-Talk service.

Over the last nine months, Orange has engaged in customer trials across Europe to develop and refine the commercial Talk Now™ service, giving customers a new instant way of communicating alongside their existing voice and messaging services. It enables easy-to-access instant one-to-one and group calling with the added benefit of a real-time availability icon, so customers can see who is available to talk, and who is not. Customers can also create “team lists” that can be used to facilitate instant conference calling with up to 10 participants at any one time. Talk Now™ can also be switched to silent mode to ensure that people in the vicinity are not disturbed. It is available today from Orange Business Solutions in the UK, and will be available later in the year for UK small business and personal customers.

Orange UK will initially be offering a promotional Talk Now™ tariff, allowing corporate customers to make group calls for the price of a standard voice call. Following this, Talk Now™ customers will have the option of choosing either a bundle or a pay-as-you-consume tariff. Full commercial tariff details will be available once the promotional period has ended.

As well as the UK, Talk Now™ is due to be launched this year by Orange in France, then in Switzerland, the Caribbean, Romania, Slovakia, The Netherlands, the Dominican Republic, Belgium (Mobistar) and Jordan (Mobilecom) during the following months. Orange named Alcatel, LG, Nokia, PalmOne and Sagem, as the first manufacturers in its Talk Now™ pan-European handset catalogue. The service will have a common user interface regardless of the handset. In the UK, the service will initially be available on the Treo 600.

Abraham Joseph, CEO of analyst house Inteligentis, said: “We believe that Push- to-Talk will prove successful in Europe. It has immediate appeal to various segments of the enterprise market and will have a broad appeal in the consumer market – not just the youth segment. We believe it will thrive in environments where quick, accurate capture of complex or rapidly changing information is needed.

He added: “The Orange solution is based on a high-end system. Despite debates over standardisation and the merits of different systems, we believe that the implementations that survive and prosper will be those that deliver superior user experiences at acceptable costs.”

Orange has undertaken nine months of extensive trials in the UK and France to develop Talk Now™. In the UK, corporate customers including NHS Lothian have conducted trials of the service and are in discussions with Orange regarding potential contracts for Talk Now™.

Alan Hush, Director of Telecommunications for NHS Lothian, said: "Talk Now™ has allowed our staff to keep in touch while on the move. It builds on the average mobile experience because it enables you to contact a group of people at any one time. We've found it extremely beneficial for mass communication to the mobile workforce."

More than 400 French business users have also conducted trials of Talk Now™. Over half of the businesses surveyed believed that their company would decide to subscribe to the Talk Now™ service. The features of the service that they found most beneficial included the ability to make group calls, the flexibility to change buddy lists, the speed and efficiency of communication, and voice call quality. The most requested features that business users asked for that were not included in the trial were a dedicated Talk Now™ “push” button and a wider choice of devices. Orange is answering both needs in its 2004/2005 Talk Now™ product range.

Orange France also conducted trials with over 300 consumers aged 34 years and under. The triallists were selected in community groups to demonstrate the benefit of the service as an instant group communication tool. Two-thirds of the triallists said they were either satisfied or very satisfied with the service, with 58% declaring that they would change their handset in order to use the Talk Now™ service. Three-quarters of them said they would use the service for “fun”, with 67% citing Talk Now™ as a “practical” tool.

Bernard Ghillebaert, Executive Vice-President of Marketing, Products and Technology for the Orange Group, said: “Once again, Orange is providing its customers with a unique service to improve their effectiveness in business. Talk Now™ gives them the opportunity to get a head-start on the competition, offering them a unique, compelling and powerful way of communicating.”

“Selected businesses across Europe have already begun to see the benefit of Talk Now™. It is providing them with an immediate and reliable way to better manage their teams and address their need to share time-critical information quickly and efficiently. It also offers consumers an ideal way to keep in touch with friends and family by making it easy for them to communicate instantly as a group – all at the touch of a button.”

[#50] New Nokia 9300 Smartphone

Nokia introduces a smaller Communicator Smartphone called the Nokia 9300. The Nokia 9300 blends sophisticated modern styling, powerful functionality and an integrated full keyboard for unparalleled ease of use in a compact design.

NEW YORK - September 8, 2004 -- Nokia (NYSE: NOK), the world leader in mobile communications, today announced the Nokia 9300, a new high-end smartphone with both beauty and brains. With outstanding voice and data capabilities, the Nokia 9300 provides the best all-in-one device for users, regardless of workstyle or lifestyle.

On the outside, the Nokia 9300 is a slim and elegant mobile phone. When opened, the device reveals a full keyboard and 65,536 color screen that can be viewed from almost any angle, at a desk or on the move. The voice functionality of the Nokia 9300 is superior when compared to most data-centric devices that combine PDA-like features with a mobile phone. Additionally, the compact design of the Nokia 9300 makes it effortless to use with either hand.

"The Nokia 9300 will appeal to a wide range of professionals who want powerful functionality from a data-enabled device without compromising the look, comfort, simplicity and usability of a standard mobile phone," said Niklas Savander, senior vice president of Nokia's business device unit. "We believe the Nokia 9300 strikes that balance in one stylish smartphone, without sacrificing the combined functionality that many people require but until now could only get from carrying multiple products."

"For as long as individual users account for the volume of device sales, the styling of a device will be as important to its success in the enterprise, as its range of data capabilities," said Kevin Burden, program manager for IDC. "A device that can be accepted as a person's primary mobile phone as easily as it performs as an application processing platform can have great success in the growing enterprise mobility market."

The Nokia 9300 features one-touch access to personal information and office applications through eight dedicated function buttons on the device's integrated keyboard. A five-way joystick allows users to easily navigate menus to find the features and functions they need to quickly accomplish tasks and find information.

"The Nokia 9300 incorporates what we know about superior usability, elegant design and powerful functionality," continued Savander. "We believe it's the smartest smartphone on the market today. It's an important addition to Nokia's high-end product portfolio."

This tri-mode world phone supports GSM/GPRS/EDGE networks. Five party conference calling via an integrated speakerphone and multiple e-mail clients (with attachments), including BlackBerry Connect* support, enable seamless and encrypted mobile connectivity in and out of the office. The Nokia 9300 also integrates infrared and Bluetooth capabilities, giving users two different ways to wirelessly synchronize their devices to a desktop PC or laptop, as well as exchange data with other mobile devices.

The Nokia 9300 has 80 MB (expandable up to 2 GB with an optional MMC card) of free user memory - more than sufficient for storing emails, documents, presentations, text and multimedia messages, ring tones, data files, calendar notes and "to-do" lists - or downloading applications, for work or play, that are available for the Nokia 9300 from over 1.25 million registered developers.

Additional features

• Bluetooth audio support for handsfree conversations
• Bluetooth data support and USB connectivity for easy data transfer or synchronization
• A variety of email clients with a support for IMAP4, POP3, APOP, SMTP, MIME, IMAP4-SSL/TLS, POP3-SSL/TLS, SMTP-SSL/TLS
• Security features including SSL/TLS, IPsec VPN for secure mobile access to corporate information, equipped with personal firewall and anti virus software
• High speed internet browsing via HTML/XHTML browsing, HTML 4.01 and JavaScript 1.3 supported
• An in-built office applications supporting documents, spreadsheets, presentations, and a PDF viewer, to take your office on the road
• MP3 and multimedia player for entertainment in and out of the office (supported formats: MPEG4(AAC), RA, MIDI, RealVideo, MPEG4, and H.263)

See the demo of Nokia 8300

Calendars and contacts compatibility:

• Microsoft Outlook 98, 2000, 2002, 2003
• Microsoft Outlook Express / Windows Address Book
• Lotus Notes 5.x and 6.x
• Lotus Organizer 5.x and 6.x

Supported e-mail servers:

• Stalker Communigate Pro
• iPlanet Messaging Server 5
• IPSwitch iMail
• MS Exchange 2000
• Lotus Domino R6
• Cyrus IMAP
• HP OpenMail 6

Planned availability for the Nokia 9300 is in the 1st quarter 2005. Nokia will offer two tri-band versions of the Nokia 9300 - one optimized for mobile networks in Europe and Asia (GSM900/1800/1900 MHz) and one optimized for mobile networks in the Americas (GSM850/1800/1900 MHz), yet both versions are able to roam in GSM networks across regions.

[#51] RIM BlackBerry 7100t

Customers Get the Freedom to Live and Work How They Want with the Stylish New BlackBerry 7100t from T-Mobile USA

T-Mobile USA, Inc. and Research In Motion (RIM) today introduced the BlackBerry 7100t in the United States and announced an early October delivery. Consumers will be able to check out the device in action tomorrow at the grand opening of T-Mobile's 1,000th retail store in San Francisco.
"T-Mobile has made it a priority to provide its customers with phones and services that not only meet their professional needs, but their personal needs as well," said Scott Ballantyne, vice president marketing, T-Mobile USA, Inc. "The BlackBerry 7100t is the perfect phone to help customers balance their busy work lives and not lose a step with what's really important, like friends and family, and all for a great value."

With the BlackBerry 7100t, consumers can have it all with a sleek wireless device that is decidedly a phone, but also manages to incorporate a large vibrant screen, a QWERTY-based keyboard and the full functionality and cachet of the BlackBerry platform. It is designed to easily allow both one-handed and two-handed operation. And it even passes the 'shirt pocket test' -- compact and lightweight enough to carry comfortably in your breast pocket.

The phone experience is uncompromising with excellent sound quality, dedicated 'send' and 'end' phone keys, a numerical phone keypad with large keys, typical talk time of more than 4 hours, a speakerphone, Bluetooth support, polyphonic ring tones and quad-band world phone functionality to keep you connected at home or in 135 countries in which T-Mobile has GSM roaming agreements.

The typing experience is also exceptional thanks to an amazing new keyboard technology from RIM called SureType(TM) that effectively converges a phone keypad and a QWERTY keyboard to fit elegantly within the size constraints of a traditional 'candy bar' phone design. Through an integrated keyboard and software system, SureType provides users with an instinctively familiar look and feel and allows them to dial phone numbers and type messages quickly, accurately and comfortably. SureType dramatically outshines the traditional multi-tap phone approach and will fundamentally change the way people think about typing on mobile phones.

Starting in October, customers who activate the BlackBerry 7100t with a qualifying rate plan, can purchase the device for a net $199.99, after mail in rebates. Additionally, T-Mobile plans to offer customers bundled (voice and data) rate plans for the BlackBerry 7100t, starting at $59.99, that are easy-to-understand and affordable -- this means big buckets of Whenever Minutes and unlimited email, unlimited text and instant messages, and unlimited Web browsing(1).

"The BlackBerry 7100t with SureType is the outcome of many years of research and innovation. We've learned a lot about mobile user needs over the years and took great care in designing a product that can satisfy people who want the look and feel of a traditional mobile phone together with advanced email, messaging and browsing capabilities," said Mike Lazaridis, president and co-CEO at Research In Motion. "In looking at the complete package -- including the sleek device design, top-of-the-line phone and data features, high-quality screen, breakthrough keyboard and overall value -- we believe we have hit a sweet spot of mobile design that will attract a whole new audience to BlackBerry for the first time."

The BlackBerry 7100t together with BlackBerry Internet Service is a great choice for consumers who are looking to upgrade their phone, and want "always on" access to email -- whether it's business or personal email. No special servers or sophisticated corporate I.T. departments are needed. With a few simple clicks, BlackBerry Internet Service is ready to go, and customers can get push-based access to up to 10 personal and corporate email accounts (including support for viewing email attachments).

The BlackBerry 7100t can also connect to RIM's enterprise platform (called BlackBerry Enterprise Server) for larger corporate and government customers. Other features of the BlackBerry 7100t include built-in IM functionality; built-in Bluetooth technology supports hands-free operation via wireless headsets and car kits; and the large, high-resolution color screen means web sites appear in living color and users have ample workspace to compose and retrieve information including contacts, emails or instant messages.

[#52] New Nokias Announced

Nokia Launches New Fashion Collection: Nokia 7280, Nokia 7270, Nokia 7260.

Inspired by the glamour and elegance of the lavish 1920s, Nokia introduces a new fashion collection of three mobile phones, launched today at the Totally Fashion event in Shanghai. Pushing the boundaries of traditional mobile phone design, the collection, which features the Nokia 7280, Nokia 7270 and Nokia 7260, blends old world art deco styling with an edgy, modern day twist. Core style influences such as flow and movement, colour, geometry, detailing and graphics were the inspiration and creative energy behind the collection.

Nokia 7280: Lean, Sublime Lines

The sleek and sexy Nokia 7280 offers a completely new mobile phone design, foregoing the traditional keypad for a discreet keyless dial. A fine lacquer-inspired high-gloss finish, complemented by leather and mirror accents, add sophistication and style making this device as much a work of art as an advanced piece of technology.
Perfect to whip out at cocktails, the Nokia 7280 is geared to attract attention and become the talking point at any high glamour soiree. Its VGA camera can snap the latest and greatest while the active slide means calls can be answered or ended with a flick of a wrist.
The handset's chic strap and carrying pouch keep this hot accessory close at all times. Using the Nokia Collector, you can transfer your favourite photos, ringtones, wallpapers, music and videos from the Nokia 7280 to and from your Mac. For a fashionable handsfree experience, style mavens can plug in the Nokia Wireless Image Headset, also introduced today. Truly, the Nokia 7280 is the fantasy phone for the fashion-conscious.

Nokia 7270: Detailed Deco

The boldly stylish Nokia 7270 draws its design inspiration from the Garbo-esque glamour of the 1920s. Encased in an etched stainless steel housing, this fold design accents your wardrobe with a matching textile wrap, carrying strap and pouch to reflect your personal style and mood.
Whether shopping in New York, Paris or Shanghai, a second opinion is merely clicks away thanks to the Nokia 7270's VGA camera. Converting clothes or shoe sizes is a snap with the clever Converter application. Tune out in style with the FM radio and fashion headset or tap away on games like Chic Pinball.

Nokia 7260: Flamboyant Fashion

Materials, graphics and colour palette set the Nokia 7260 apart. Featuring chrome and steel accents, this Art-Deco-meets-Industrial-Design concept is certain to be a favourite of fashion-minded crowd. To stand out in a crowd, consumers can enhance the style of their Nokia 7260 with daring accessories, like stylish straps and carrying pouches.
Jetsetters can easily call home with the Nokia 7260's tri-band capabilities, or send celebrity sightings using the VGA camera. The Nokia 7260 allows users to step out in style every day.

[#53] SF65, a new swivel calmshell mobile phone from Siemens

Siemens mobile today unveild the SF65: a clamshell mobile phone that combines digital photography with mobile communication in one striking handset.

Adding a new dimension to camera phones, the SF65 integrates a 1.3 mega pixel digital camera, LED flash, 4x zoom, swivel action screen and 65,000 color display so every moment can be captured in greater detail, at any time of the day.

Inspiration, high-finish design and innovation come together in the SF65 to create an impressive mobile phone, packed full of features. The swivel action screen enables the phone to look and feel like an actual digital still camera, and with the 65,000 color display, images are displayed in rich and vibrant clarity. Equipped with an integrated LED flash and 4x continuous digital zoom, the handset enables the user to pinpoint and capture special details day or night. With a special 1.3 mega pixel camera the SF65 combines the quality of a digital camera with the fun and spontaneity of a mobile phone. Accompanied by enhanced picture editing, it also encourages you to be creative and play with endless imaging possibilities like framing and with a large 18 MB memory drive every moment can be remembered.

Siemens SF65 has a high gloss finish in Polar White and a distinctive, minimalist feel. Perfect for those who want to make a style statement, its sleek lines have an iconic look and ensure the SF65 looks elegant however it is being used. At just 97g the SF65 is also small, light and practical. Despite its high-tech features, the SF65 is remarkably easy to use and with a large display and luxury finish, it is a phone that is fun to handle. The phone has been designed with camera and zoom keys at the top and bottom of the display to give a shortcut to the camera function – just in case one needs to capture a perfect picture moment quickly. There are also endless gaming options and with over 64-chord polyphonic ring tones the SF65 also offers high sound quality.

Thorsten Heins, President of the Mobile Phones division within Siemens mobile, says: "We've brought the experience of using a digital camera to a mobile phone so that everyone can capture and enjoy moments in better quality, clarity and detail no matter where they are. The SF65 also carries the design signature of Siemens mobile – it’s classic, timeless and irresistible!”. The SF65 comes with a range of Siemens Original Accessories for extra convenience: a variety of headsets including the elaborately designed Headset Purestyle with increased wearing comfort, a range of chargers, a spare battery, a data cable and a flexible Car Kit Portable. A practical Tour Case completes the product portfolio.

The SF65 will be available from December 2004 across Europe and Asia . The phone comes in 'Polar White' and the price will be available locally.

[#54] JAVOScreen Protector

Few things are more common these days than screen protectors, it seems. Every time you turn around, some other company has introduced a new line of screen protectors for yet another new line of mobile devices. So you could probably understand why I'm always a bit leery when another company approaches me about reviewing their screen protector product.

But this time, I am glad I told them to send one over. In this case, "them" is JAVOEdge, a company based out of Washington state in the US. Their product is called the JAVOScreen, and it is a glare reducing screen protector meant for use with various PDAs and mobile phones. In this case, we tried out one of their new products, the JAVOScreen for the Sony Ericsson K700i.

The US$8.25 JAVOScreen K700i kit includes the screen protector itself, a lint-free cleaning cloth, and an installation card for squeegeeing out the bubbles during installation. In fact, K700i owners will probably recognize the cleaning cloth, since it appears to be just a slightly smaller version of the one that Sony Ericsson has been including in the box with many of their recent phones. I have a couple of them, as a matter of fact, and use them regularly when photographing phones for reviews. It is a good cleaning cloth.

The JAVOScreen itself comes in a plastic bag and has a clear plastic sheet attached to it to keep dust off of the surface of the that gets applied to the phone's display. A sticker on that piece of plastic makes it a relatively painless process to remove without getting fingerprints all over everything.

But before you go that far, you need to clean off the display with the cleaning cloth. The cleaner it is, the better things will work out. Once the display is prepped, remove the plastic backing from the JAVOScreen, line up the curved cutout section that goes around the K700i's joystick, and lay it in place. Then use the installation card to push any trapped air bubbles out of the way.

If you goof up and get a piece of dust under there, don't fret. JAVOEdge says the JAVOScreen is washable, and I tested that myself. I removed the screen protector, rinsed it with warm water, dried it in the line free cloth, and reapplied it. No dust, no problem.

Well, maybe not exactly no problem. You will notice in the photo of the finished K700i that the JAVOScreen doesn't seem to be firmly mated to the screen around the joystick. This is because the area around the joystick doesn't seem to be 100% flat. The joystick appears to warp the face of the display a bit. If the JAVOScreen were a little bit shorter, you could probably avoid this by sliding the screen protector away from the joystick a wee bit. But either way, it is not a big deal.

In the end, the JAVOScreen looks good, is easy to apply (and reapply), and doesn't cost a fortune. It will protect your phone's display from getting scratched, and it will also hide fingerprints and cheek smudges in the process. I call that a good deal.

[#55] Windows Mobile barrage from T-Mobile

Mobile network operator T-Mobile sheds light on three new Windows Mobile powered devices, including the SDA and SDA Music smartphones and the MDA Compact communicator.

SDA Music smartphone

Having been one of the first mobile network operators to offer devices powered by Microsoft's Windows Mobile platform through its MDA line of communicators, T-Mobile is about to heavily expand its portfolio of devices based on Microsoft platforms. Unveiled today, the SDA and SDA Music smartphones are the very first Windows Mobile smartphones to join T-Mobile's product line-up, while the MDA Compact will supplement the recently announced MDA III.

A tri-band GSM 900/1800/1900 MHz handset, the SDA smartphone measures in at 108 x 47 x 20 mm and weighs 100 g. Despite its minute size and large, 16-bit colour display, T-Mobile claims a battery life of up to 200 hours of standby time and up to 6 hours of talk time from the exchangeable 1050 mAh Lithium Ion battery. 64 MB of ROM and 32 MB of RAM will tend to the storage needs of users, while those requiring more will see their needs served by the miniSD expansion slot. Furthermore, the SDA also boasts an integrated digital camera with 0.3 MP resolution, Bluetooth, Infrared and USB 2.0 connectivity - all powered by Microsoft's Windows Mobile 2003 for Smartphone platform.

The second smartphone unveiled by T-Mobile is the SDA Music, which is essentially a modified version of the SDA featuring dedicated media control keys placed just above the numerical keypad. Also, the SDA Music will feature mini USB for connectivity rather than USB, but is otherwise identical to the SDA in all respects.

Read full characteristics (.pdf, 136 kb)

MDA Compact

Last, but not least, T-Mobile also introduced the MDA Compact, which will supplement its previously announced MDA III communicator at a somewhat lower price and with less features. Sporting quad-band GSM/GPRS 850/900/1800/1900 MHz, the MDA Compact will be powered by a 416 MHz Intel Bulverde processor, backed up by 64 MB of RAM and a 1200 mAh Lithium Polymer battery claiming up to 180 hours of standby time and 3 hours of talk time. Measuring 108 x 58 x 18 mm and a featherweight 150 g, the MDA Compact also offers an integrated digital camera with a resolution of 1.3 MP, as well as an SD/MMC Card expansion slot with SDIO support, Bluetooth 1.2, Infrared and USB connectivity.

The T-Mobile SDA and MDA III are slated for availability in late September, with the former to be priced at 369.95 EUR without subscription. The SDA Music is slated to hit shelves in November, as is the MDA Compact - selling for 369.95 EUR and 489.95 EUR respectively.

[#56] RIM announces Blackberry 7100v for Vodafone

Research In Motion today announced the latest addition to their Blackberry line-up - the Blackberry 7100v. While it may look different than the recently announced 7100t, we suspect the 7100v is a simple rebranding of the same device for Vodafone and will use Vodafone style menus with their trademark red and white colors. It will be available exclusively from Vodafone and introduced on a phased basis starting in October across Australia, Austria, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, and the UK.

The BlackBerry 7100v includes a large, high-resolution color screen, a speakerphone, Bluetooth support, quad-band GSM for international roaming, 32MB flash memory + 4MB SRAM, and polyphonic ring tone support. It weighs 120g and has a battery life (using the standard battery) of over four hours talk time and over eight days standby. A hands-free earpiece, USB cable, and standard holster are included. Additional accessories such as holsters and car chargers will also be available. The BlackBerry 7100v supports Bluetooth headset and car-kit profiles. See compared all details of the 2 models. The Demo Version is mandatory, it gives a general idea of "what's going on here" ;)

[#57] Vodafone launches Windows Mobile VPA III

Hot on the heels of the XDA IIs, Vodafone launches their own Windows Mobile communicator with nearly identical features.

Vodafone, the world's largest mobile carrier, has announced a Windows Mobile-based device dubbed the Vodafone Personal Assistant III, or VPA III, offering cutting-edge connectivity.

The VPA III is a communicator-type device that is worthy of the title "uber-connected". Starting with a quad-band GSM/GPRS radio at 850/900/1800/1900 MHz for phone connectivity, it also offers 802.11b Wi-Fi support for wireless LAN connectivity. It then adds Bluetooth support for connecting to Bluetooth headsets or other accessories. In addition to the expected USB connection to a PC, it also offers an SDIO-capable Secure Digital slot, all of which together make it one of the most connected devices on the market.

All of that connectivity is backed by a 16-bit color display measuring 240 x 320 pixels, standard for a Windows Mobile communicator, and a slide out thumbboardusing the European-targeted QWERTZ layout rather than the more English-centric QWERTY layout. It also includes a VGA camera. Under the hood the VPA III offers an Intel XScale PXA263 processor running at 400 MHz, 64 MB of ROM, and a spatious 128 MB of RAM. The Lithium Ion Polymer battery is rated for 5 hours talk time or 200 hours standby.

Despite being a communicator, the VPA III runs Windows Mobile 2003 Pocket PC Phone Edition. All of the usual Microsoft software is included, including support for both POP3 and IMAP4 email. All of those features have their price, however. The VPA III measures 125 x 71.6 x 18.7 mm and weighs in at a hefty 205 grams. Overall it is nearly identical to the recently announced O2 XDA IIs and T-Mobile MDA III, save for the casing and memory capacity.

[#58] Update service for Sony Ericsson K700

The Sony Ericsson update service for K700 is now finally available.

The update service requires the same hardware as with P900 updates; Pentium PC, Windows OS, DSS-20 or DSS-25 SyncStation and a fully charged device. The following models are supported by the update service: K700, Z1010, P900/908, GC75 and GC79. We have tested the update service, and found no problems during the update process. Get the update.

See snapshots of the instalation process: pic1->pic2->pic3->pic4->pic5->pic6->pic7

[#59] 10 new 3G models from Vodafone

VODAFONE ANNOUNCES EXTENSIVE NEW HANDSET RANGE
FOR 3G CONSUMER SERVICES

Vodafone today announces its extensive range of 10 new generation 3G handsets planned for the Christmas period, following the launch of the Vodafone Mobile Connect 3G datacard and the successful introduction of Vodafone live! with 3G.

Vodafone is working with some of the world's leading handset manufacturers including Sharp, Motorola, Sony Ericsson, NEC, Nokia and Samsung to provide customers with a wide choice of 3G handsets at a range of prices. These handsets will be available with a broader array of services across Europe and Japan. This new range of Vodafone 3G handsets, all featuring Vodafone's multi-media consumer service, Vodafone live!, has been designed in close collaboration with manufacturers to allow consumers to experience the benefits of enhanced Vodafone live! with 3G services. The handset range, which includes models and designs exclusive to Vodafone, will enable significant improvements in imaging, music, entertainment and information. Highlights include Europe's first 2 mega pixel camera phone, equipped with auto focus, optical zoom and high resolution displays; handsets that offer CD music quality, stereo speakers and MP3 players; access to 3D gaming; video and audio streaming and video calling.

Customers can use VodafoneЎ¦s new generation of 3G handsets in both Europe and Japan as services will be delivered seamlessly by Vodafone's global W-CDMA networks. Vodafone plans to launch 10 new 3G handsets. The portfolio includes the Sharp 802, Sharp 902, Motorola E1000, Motorola V980, Motorola C980, NEC's Vodafone 802N, Sony Ericsson V800, Nokia 6630, Samsung Z110V and Samsung Z107V.

"The planned launch of our new 3G handset portfolio represents a major breakthrough in terms of handset choice", said Peter Bamford, Chief Marketing Officer, Vodafone. "It will also give consumers the opportunity to experience the enhanced range of Vodafone live! with 3G services, opening up a whole new world of communication and entertainment via the mobile phone"

Full details of these services and handset availability will follow in November.

Vodafone's 3G photogallery

Motorola C980

Motorola V980

NEC 802

Nokia 6630

Samsung Z107V

Samsung Z110V

Sharp 802

Sharp 902

SonyEricsson V800