Samsung S400i
The Samsung S400i is only available from O2 and is enabled for i-mode, i-mode makes it easy to access the web and use e-mail. At present O2 have a number of website such as ebay, sports, news and games websites. If you’re on the move you can also access email but you must use the i-mode email system “i-mail”.
The Phone itself looks similar to the Samsung D500 but it’s lighter and a bit smaller, there’s no MP3 player, no expandable memory, and the camera is just VGA resolution. The slide up feature is really nice there is only 13MB memory with no option for expansion, which might be an issue for some people.
* VGA camera (640 x 480 pixels) with flash
* Video camera
* Display: 262,000 colours
* Connectivity: Bluetooth
* Memory: 13 Mbytes
* Vibration alert
* Triband
* Size: 91 x 45 x 21 mm
* Weight: 88g
* Talktime: 3 hours
* Battery standby: 150 hours
Overall it’s a super little entry-level phone, nice design, excellent screen, easy to navigate around and the i-mode works well the web browser is fast.
Nokia 6101
As Meteor and O2 are offering the 6101 as a Pay As You Go and Speakeasy phone I decided to take a quick look at what’s on offer. The Nokia 6101 is a small sophisticated flip phone and I think Nokia are definitely making progress in the overall design of their clamshell phones.
The camera is a standard VGA, which has the ability to take self-portraits when using the external display as a viewfinder. It’s not the best feature as the display is very small, the camera does however have night mode but alas no flash. The video quality is really quit poor and basic and also, it doesn’t have a zoom.
Lack of Bluetooth maybe an issue for some people, as with all Nokia phones the user interface is easy to navigate.
Nokia 6101 Specs
* Voice recorder
* FM stereo radio with headset
* Voice Features: voice dialing, voice commands
* Integrated handsfree speaker
* MP3 ringtones / polyphonic ringtones
* Java™ games
* Caller ID with image
* Memory: 4.4 Mbytes
* Connectivity: USB, infra-red
* Triband
* Vibration alert
* Size: 85 x 45 x 24 mm
* Weight: 97g
* Talk time: 2 - 4 hours
* Battery standby: 150 - 350 hours
Overall the 6101 is a reasonable mid-range camera phone. But, if your thinking of buying have a look at the clamshell phones from Motorola or Samsung first.
Sony Ericsson K790i/K800i Number 1
The swedish company Krusell who make mobile phone cases have published it’s monthly rating for July. These statistics are based on the orders for carrying cases made during the month and therefor reflect the real demand for mobile devises in over 50 countries.
As you can see the Sony Ericsson K790i/K800i is leading the way
Top 10 of mobile phones in July:
* 1. Sony Ericsson K790i/K800i
* 2. (1) Sony Ericsson W810i
* 3. (3) Sony Ericsson K750i/D750i/W800i
* 4. (7) Palm Treo 600/650/700
* 5. (5) Nokia N70
* 6. (2) Motorola RAZR V3/ V3i /V3c
* 7. (-) Nokia 5140/5140i
* 8. (6) Nokia 6280/6282
* 9. (10) Qtek S200/I-mate Jamin
* 10. (4) Nokia 6230/6230
(the previous rank is shown in brackets)
LG-KV2400 Slider Phone
LG have just unveiled a nice new slider phone the LG KV2400. On the outside it looks sleek. But, don’t expect any earth shattering features because there doesn’t appear to be much else going for it. The usual MP3 Player, 1.3 MP camera, and video recording but no GPS, no DMB. This may not even make it out of Korea…but who knows.
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Sony Ericsson Z300i
Available from O2 in Ireland comes the Sony Ericsson Z300i this is a clamshell mainly targeted at women than men I guess. This model started shipping in February but my guess is Sony Ericsson are keeping this model going for a while maybe until the end of 2006. The first impression it makes is the plastic is rather good, solid and qualitative, the polyphony sound is a bit weak for today and mp3 melodies are not supported. But, not everybody wants mp3 melodies I guess. However is has a bright 65,536-colour screen lets you enjoy colourful messaging with text and sound.
You can easily reach your phone book and messaging with one press of a button and you can change the front and back covers anytime.
Specifications:
* Picture viewer
* 650 KB shared memory
* Talk time - 5 hours 30 min
* Standby time - 250 hours
Overall Small and neat clamshell design, the high-resolution graphical display is easy to read and is also ideal for SMS text messaging, especially with its T9 predictive text input. Available O2 stores, Carphone Warehouse and other O2 agents across the country.
Nokia 6234
The Nokia 6234 ia another Vodafone exclusive handset, I had a quick look at this model and found numerous personalisations such as vodaphone graphics and icons that have been integrated into the phone. You also get the start-up and shutdown graphics as well as tones to give the Vodafone feel if that’s the kind of thing you like. Personally I would like to be paid to be a walking advert but that’s another story…
Ok back to the phone…
Specs:
* MicroSD memory cards of up to 2 GB
* High quality sound through stereo speakers and 3D surround sound
* Stereo FM radio and Digital music player
* Stand-by Up to 340 h
* Talk time Up to 4 h
At this stage I think this model is about six month’s old but dont let that put you off, overall I like the design of the device. One gripe I had after using it would be the size of the call buttons and the two softkeys. They are both small and recessed, which makes them a bit hard to get to casually.
Nokia 8800 Sirocco Edition
I’v checked all nokia sites for these and they have not been anounced yet so this could be a just fake picture, anyway no spec’s are know yet. The Nokia 8800 SE may have a 2 MP cam but that about all we’ve been able to find out at present.
As soon as we have more information we’ll post it here
Nokia Music
I
n a bold move Nokia has announced an agreement to purchase Loudeye for aproximately $60m. Loudeye are one of the leading players in the market for distributing digital music with access to 1.6m tracks.
Last year Nokia sold over 15 million digital music capable devices in the second quarter alone. This move gives us an indication of how the mobile world and music world appear to be converging. And allows them to claim to be the world’s largest manufacturer of digital music players.
I think Apple will have a big player to content with next year as they might give ITunes a run for there money.
Airlines to replace ‘no smoking’ with ‘no mobile’
Did you know that “No mobile” signs are to replace the outdated “no smoking” signs above airline seats with the introduction of in-flight mobile phone services in Europe next year. It’s a move that makes total sense and maybe something Ryanair are thinking about if stories are to believe about them introducing this service next year.
This technology, which is satellite-based, has been developed by Airbus and Sita joint venture OnAir it will allow passengers to make in-flight mobile calls and send text messages on short-haul flights across Europe at a cost of around €2.50 per minute.
Sony Ericsson K618
The Sony Ericsson K618i was announced today, it’s a 3G handset and looks something similar to the w810i. This high performance 3G device is as light and slim as a typical 2.5G phone, yet delivers blisteringly-fast speeds for streaming or downloading music & video clips, browsing the web or gaming. And staying in control of your inbox is made easier with support for push email, allowing messages to be sent directly to the phone without having to download them.
Features of the K618i include:
* Bluetooth EDR with stereo support
* M2 memory card slot, 256mb card in box
* 176×220 262k color screen
* 2.0 megapixel camera, plus VGA camera for video calling
* Music player with control keys
* Phone speaker
* USB charging
The K618 is a striking, slim-line ‘stick’ design that will launch in a choice of Vibrant Black or Bright White. This UMTS 2100 device will be available in selected markets from Q3 2006.
