Microsoft and Qualcomm have entered a deal to have Microsoft's Windows Mobile operating system work more closely with Qualcomm latest wireless chipset. Qualcomm's 7000 series Mobile Station Modem (MSM) chipset combines a radio modem and applications processor on one chip. This allows a resulting phone to maintain better battery life and have a smaller physical size.
The new software should be ready sometime in the second half the year and will allow phone manufacturers to more easily create their devices.
Thursday, May 3, 2007
Symbian 9.3 released
Symbian announced version 9.3 of its flagship smartphone OS. It adds several important high-end features, but also includes the ability for vendors to strip the system down to make it useful in lower-end handsets. In terms of volume shipments, Nokia still remains the leader in Symbian handsets. The OS is used in all of the company's S60 handsets.
New features in 9.3 include:
Improved memory management and general speed boosts because of that
Native support for WiFi
Support for firmware OTA (FOTA), HSDPA, IPSec for UMA and push-to-talk over cellular (PoC)
New features in 9.3 include:
Improved memory management and general speed boosts because of that
Native support for WiFi
Support for firmware OTA (FOTA), HSDPA, IPSec for UMA and push-to-talk over cellular (PoC)
HTC Excalibur approved by FCC
The featured packed HTC Excalibur has been approved by the FCC (ID NM8EXCA). The handset is being positioned to compete with the Motorola Q, but since it's GSM the competition will be limited until Motorola introduces new variants of the Q.
Features of the HTC Excalibur include:
Quadband GSM
QVGA screen
WiFi/Bluetooth
Windows Mobile Smartphone OS
Unique touch-sensitive scroll pad on side
No carrier deals for the Excalibur have been announced, but there have been rumors pointing to both Cingular and T-Mobile. The phone is expected to ship before the end of the year, likely before the holidays. Despite not being officially announced, Geek.com posted some medium resolution shots of the phone.
Features of the HTC Excalibur include:
Quadband GSM
QVGA screen
WiFi/Bluetooth
Windows Mobile Smartphone OS
Unique touch-sensitive scroll pad on side
No carrier deals for the Excalibur have been announced, but there have been rumors pointing to both Cingular and T-Mobile. The phone is expected to ship before the end of the year, likely before the holidays. Despite not being officially announced, Geek.com posted some medium resolution shots of the phone.
Palm Treo 700wx launches on Sprint
The Palm Treo 700wx has officially launched on Sprint. While this was the first time it has been officially talked about, like most past Treos there wasn't much about the 700wx that didn't leak. The handset is almost identical to the Treo 700w that Verizon has exclusively carried since early this year. The only difference is an increase in RAM (well, and Sprint branding).
Features of the Treo 700wx:
Windows Mobile 5.0
EV-DO data
Bluetooth and IR
1.3 megapixel camera
128MB NVRAM (60MB for the user) plus SDIO slot
240×240 touch-sensitive screen with 65k colors
Speakerphone
Sprint is selling the 700wx for $499.99 after a 2-year service agreement and $150 in instant savings. In contrast, Verizon is selling the 700w for $399 after promotional savings.
Features of the Treo 700wx:
Windows Mobile 5.0
EV-DO data
Bluetooth and IR
1.3 megapixel camera
128MB NVRAM (60MB for the user) plus SDIO slot
240×240 touch-sensitive screen with 65k colors
Speakerphone
Sprint is selling the 700wx for $499.99 after a 2-year service agreement and $150 in instant savings. In contrast, Verizon is selling the 700w for $399 after promotional savings.
HTC shows off Q4 2006 lineup
High Tech Computer has officially announced their holiday lineup. While leaks have shared info on all of these handsets, the official announcement clears the way for these devices to actually ship. Additionally we have actual model names, the trendy codenames like Excalibur and Trinity won't actually make it into production.
All of the devices run Windows Mobile. Descriptions follow the photo from left to right.
P3300 (Artemis) - First "navigation PDA" from HTC. Software from TomTom provides navigation, complete with 3D maps.
Built-in GPS
Trackball and track wheel
2.8" screen
P3600 (Trinity) - PDA form factor, extends on the HTC Prophet and Magician.
HSDPA-ready 3G connectivity
2 megapixel camera
S620 (Excalibur) - Flagship model, super thin and is HTC's answer to the Motorola Q. It's already approved by the FCC.
QWERTY keyboard
Just 12.8mm thick, weighs 130g with battery
JOGGR touch sensitive navigation bar
Quadband GSM plus EDGE, WiFi and Bluetooth
S310 (Oxygen) - Candy bar style handset, relatively rare for Windows Mobile
Quadband GSM
Comes in three colors: Black, white and grey
HTC will begin shipping these cell phones in Europe under their own brand starting in September and continuing through October. US carriers may launch one or more of the phones under their own brand, per HTC's OEM strategy in the US. T-Mobile will be shipping a customized version of the HTC P3300 as the MDA Compact III in several of its European markets. We've heard Cingular is picking up a few of these models as well.
All of the devices run Windows Mobile. Descriptions follow the photo from left to right.
P3300 (Artemis) - First "navigation PDA" from HTC. Software from TomTom provides navigation, complete with 3D maps.
Built-in GPS
Trackball and track wheel
2.8" screen
P3600 (Trinity) - PDA form factor, extends on the HTC Prophet and Magician.
HSDPA-ready 3G connectivity
2 megapixel camera
S620 (Excalibur) - Flagship model, super thin and is HTC's answer to the Motorola Q. It's already approved by the FCC.
QWERTY keyboard
Just 12.8mm thick, weighs 130g with battery
JOGGR touch sensitive navigation bar
Quadband GSM plus EDGE, WiFi and Bluetooth
S310 (Oxygen) - Candy bar style handset, relatively rare for Windows Mobile
Quadband GSM
Comes in three colors: Black, white and grey
HTC will begin shipping these cell phones in Europe under their own brand starting in September and continuing through October. US carriers may launch one or more of the phones under their own brand, per HTC's OEM strategy in the US. T-Mobile will be shipping a customized version of the HTC P3300 as the MDA Compact III in several of its European markets. We've heard Cingular is picking up a few of these models as well.
Samsung ships new PocketPC phone
Samsung's SCH-i700 has started shipping. The PocketPC OS powered phone looks pretty spiffy on the outside, but still packs some punch on the inside. It's got an integrated digital camera, 64MB of ram (we assume that you can store photos on this memory unlike the name RAM connotates). PocketPC Thoughts has a review unit and a nice write-up about it.
BenQ's New Smartphone
BenQ has announced the P30, a new Symbian powered smart phone. The name is awful close to Sony Ericsson's P800, and they even both run the same OS. Despite the rip-off quality's, the P30 has a decent feature set:
16-bit TFT display
Integrated digital camera with 16-bit color depth
Bluetooth
Look for it soon... No prices have been released yet.
16-bit TFT display
Integrated digital camera with 16-bit color depth
Bluetooth
Look for it soon... No prices have been released yet.
Symbian 7.0 Released
Symbian has released the 7th version of their popular mobile operating system. The new release add multi-tasking (surf the net AND download a file at the same time), an updated Java implementation, boosted multimedia capabilities and Arabic/Hebrew language support.
It's not clear if you can update your mobile device but our guess is not. You'll have to wait until your phone manufacturer/carrier gets their customized version of 7.0 done.
It's not clear if you can update your mobile device but our guess is not. You'll have to wait until your phone manufacturer/carrier gets their customized version of 7.0 done.
O'Grady Reviews P800
Mobile mogul Jason O'Grady has posted a very detailed review of his latest gadget--the Sony Ericsson P800 (seen at right). It's unique looks make it easily recognizable to most people, but it's amazing feature set makes it stick in the heads of geeks.
"The phone is more than a successor to the wonderful Sony Ericsson T68i - it is a complete departure. Where the T68i was a tiny powerful color Bluetooth phone, the P800 is more akin to a small computer that makes phone calls and take pictures."
"The phone is more than a successor to the wonderful Sony Ericsson T68i - it is a complete departure. Where the T68i was a tiny powerful color Bluetooth phone, the P800 is more akin to a small computer that makes phone calls and take pictures."
The Neonode N1 Is Coming...
Gizmodo notes that the rumored Neonode N1 is indeed coming. The phone is one of the smallest we've seen, and since it packs smartphone functions (runs a Microsoft OS) it's even more amazing.
Details are still sketchy and direct URL's aren't possible thanks to Neonode's Flash site, but near as we can tell 1,000 units have shipped and the rest are on their way.
Details are still sketchy and direct URL's aren't possible thanks to Neonode's Flash site, but near as we can tell 1,000 units have shipped and the rest are on their way.
Handspring and Orange Partner
The well-known PDA maker Handspring has partnered with European mega company Orange SA to develop new smart phones. The phones will be used exclusively in Europe on Orange's network. At this time there is no word on a time frame or feature set.
The Register has a little on this move--but no firm details.
Update: We've gotten word that the phone will be an updated Treo. Should be available in September '03 under the Orange brand name.
The Register has a little on this move--but no firm details.
Update: We've gotten word that the phone will be an updated Treo. Should be available in September '03 under the Orange brand name.
Siemens' New Offerings Coming to USA
According to InfoSync World, US readers won't have to be jealous of Europeans who can purchase the new offering from Siemens (at CeBIT). Look for Siemens to make a lot of ground in the US market over the next 18 months--it's designs are sexy and feature rich.
The SX1 (shown at right) will be available late this year. It's another one of the seemingly endless supply of new phones with crazy button schemes, but other than that seems solid. It's got a 16 bit color screen, PIM applications, video recording and more.
The SL56 is coming as well and packs quite a punch. It's not pinned as a smartphone like the SX1 but still boasts a sliding keypad, POP and IMAP email, and Bluetooth.
The M56 isn't as advanced as its counterparts, but it still sports a color screen and GSM connectivity.
The SX1 (shown at right) will be available late this year. It's another one of the seemingly endless supply of new phones with crazy button schemes, but other than that seems solid. It's got a 16 bit color screen, PIM applications, video recording and more.
The SL56 is coming as well and packs quite a punch. It's not pinned as a smartphone like the SX1 but still boasts a sliding keypad, POP and IMAP email, and Bluetooth.
The M56 isn't as advanced as its counterparts, but it still sports a color screen and GSM connectivity.
BlackBerry To Mesh With Smartphones
Research In Motion, most well known for their popular BlackBerry devices, is in talks with two major players in the smartphone arena--Symbian and Microsoft. According to Wireless NewsFactor RIM wants makers of smartphones BlackBerry savvy. Obviously the best way to get into the phones is to get into the OS. It looks like good times ahead for consumers itching to do more with their phones.
It's worth a mention that the widely publicized Sony Ericsson P800 is powered by Symbian.
It's worth a mention that the widely publicized Sony Ericsson P800 is powered by Symbian.
AT&T Smartphones
Gizmodo notes that AT&T Wireless will be offering smartphones powered by Microsoft. No word yet if people like getting the "Blue Screen of Death" on their phones.
MiTAC Announces Smart Phone
MiTAC has announced the first clam-shell style smart phone, the MiTAC 8380. We're not quite sure what's so smart about it--but it's got good specs:
Runs Microsoft's Windows Powered Smartphone platform
Powered by Intel's new XScale processor
The screen is a TFT transflective color display
Inludes an integrated digital camera
MPEG-4 encoder for sending video
The Microsoft part may be its weakpoint--for the most part it's an untested operating system. Also, who wants the blue screen of death when making a call? Otherwise, this phone looks solid.
Runs Microsoft's Windows Powered Smartphone platform
Powered by Intel's new XScale processor
The screen is a TFT transflective color display
Inludes an integrated digital camera
MPEG-4 encoder for sending video
The Microsoft part may be its weakpoint--for the most part it's an untested operating system. Also, who wants the blue screen of death when making a call? Otherwise, this phone looks solid.
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