Samsung Soul –a touchpad slider in a slim shell

Samsung has unveiled a new flagship product at Mobile World Congress, which started today in Barcelona. The phone is called Soul (standing for “the Spirit of Ultra”). The company has made an unusual step and added a touch-sensitive panel under the display to this slider-type phone. This is a 1.2” OLED display with the control elements customizable with active functions. Besides the Soul is packed in a 12.9 mm shell and equipped with a 5-megapixel camera.

The specs of Samsung Soul:

• Cell networks - GSM (quad band) and UMTS/HSDPA (up to 7.2 Mbps)
• Display – 2.2” (16M colors, QVGA)
• 5-megapixel auto focus camera, 4x digital zoom, face detection, image stabilizer, Wide Dynamic Range
• FM-radio with RDS
• Interface - Bluetooth 2.0, USB 2.0
• microSD-slot
• Media player
• Bang & Olufsen ICEpower audio enhancement technology
• Dimensions – 105.9x49.5x12.9 mm

Samsung Soul will come to European stores in April 08.

Sony Ericsson XPERIA X1 goes live

Sony Ericsson's new X1 is a true multimedia powerhouse, employing an arc slider form-factor, sliding the phone upwards reveals a QWERTY keyboard, similar to HTC's Tytn II. The Xperia aims to do it all, in a not-so overly big size.

“This launch, and the announcement of the X1, further strengthens the overall Sony Ericsson brand and places us at the forefront of mobile convergence.”, said Dee Dutta, Head of Marketing, Sony Ericsson.

The Xperia is Sony Ericsson's first Windows Mobile-powered smartphone, running on Windows Mobile version 6. The Xperia will be great for web browsing, thanks to its 800x480 3”, bright touchscreen. The Xperia has several different input methods, you are not limited to just the touch screen, it supports: touch, full QWERTY keyboard, 4-way navigation key, and optical joystick navigation. The Xperia is expected to launch sometime in the second half of 2008.

Technical specifications of theSony Ericsson XPERIA X1:

• GSM/GPRS/EDGE 850/900/1800/1900 MHz, UMTS/HSDPA/HSUPA 900/1700/1900/2100 MHz;
• OS: Windows Mobile 6;
• Display: 3", touch sensitive, 800х480, 65 K colors;
• Dimensions: 110 x 53 x 16.7 mm;
• Weight: 145 grams;
  
• Camera: 3.2 Mpix, autofocus;
• Bluetooth (A2DP), Wi-Fi, GPS;
• FM-radio
• Bundled storage: up to 400 Mb
• microSD memory expansion slot

SE’s patent for transformer phone

The US Patent Office has got a patent application from Sony Ericsson. The project describes a mobile phone with two detachable connected housings. The idea can be implemented in a clamshell, slider or a rotator-type phone. The phone consists of two parts: the one with the keypad and the battery (GPS-receiver and camera can go in there too) and the other with the display, some buttons and another battery. Both housings communicate with each other via Bluetooth. The developers believe such design serves two opposite goals – while being compact, it provides a convenient hardware keypad. That is, you can use only the display housing and the rest of the phone put deep in your bag. Besides you can joint two parts with the main display on the inside or outside of phone, when closed.

Apacer player with touch control

Apacer Technology Inc has announced the release of a new MP3-player AU860. In 2007 the AU860 concept was awarded G-Mark – the highest design award in Japan.

The AU860 player is equipped with a 1.8” color LCD, which provides the clear picture. You can control the player with a touch-sensitive panel with blue backlight.

The company draws attention to battery performance. The player can run music for 20 hours continuously due to the special technology. There is an external equalizer button and high quality headphones, which let you listen to the music comfortably.

The player comes with 2 and 4 GB of memory onboard.

Spy pics of Asus M930 smartphone

We’ve already mentioned an upcoming Asus M930 smartphone – a landscape oriented clamshell with two keyboards (numeric and QWERTY) and two displays. This time some spy pics and info have leaked to the Internet from a private presentation in Germany. The specs of Asus M930 agree with the preliminary ones – 2G/3G support, Windows Mobile 6 Standard OS, TI 2431 450 MHz, 2-megapixel camera, wireless modules and so on.

Asus M930 will be shipped in 2Q 2008, its price will range from $500 to $600 depending on the kit.

Toshiba SoftBank 921T – waterproof, hinge display, TV-tuner

It has become a tradition with many Japan’s handset makers to give names of big TV brands to mobile displays and phone image processing systems. For example, Toshiba has equipped its new 921T handset (announced yesterday by SoftBank operator) with a widescreen OLED display called “REGZA”.

This clamshell phone has a waterproof shell, which complies with IPX5, IPX7 standards. Its hinge display can be revolving in two directions. The 921T comes with a TV-tuner receiving “one-segment” digital TV-programs, specially designed for mobile devices.

The short specs of Toshiba 921T:

• National networks only - W-CDMA with HSPDA (up to 3.6 Mbps)
• Dimensions: 51x106x19.4 mm
• Weight: 132 g
• Display: 2.8” widescreen, 240x400 pixels
• microSD cards (up to 2 GB)
• Main camera: 3.24-megapixel, auto focus, image stabilizer
• Camera for video calls: CMOS, 320-kpix
• Connectivity: Bluetooth (stereo sound), IrDA
• Navigation and payment services
• Terrestrial TV programs

Skyfire – the fastest mobile browser

Soon we expect the release of a new free browser for mobile devices called Skyfire. Currently the company is about to release a private beta-version for Windows Mobile smartphones, and later it will add the support of Symbian smartphones. According to Skyfire, the advantage of the new browser is that it implements the same capabilities as PC solutions. The browser supports Flash 9, Ajax, Quicktime, Java, Windows Media and other technologies, so the users can view web-pages on a mobile device quickly and easily. The smartphone screen displays all essential info, including dynamic content, audio and video. Besides the company claims Skyfire features the fastest work speed among other mobile browsers.

Reportedly, the users can participate in tests of the new mobile browser. They need to fill in the registration form on this page and wait for the test start notification.

Sony to update notebook lineup

Sony has launched updated notebooks of the following series: VAIO AR60, FZ30, SZ70, CR30 and TP2 based on Intel Core 2 Duo CPU. Besides most notebooks to be released this year will be equipped with Blu-ray Disc. The senior models of the AR60, FZ30 and SZ70 series will carry 4 GB SDRAM onboard, which should have great effect on their productivity.

Sony highlights the capabilities of the VGN-AR61ZU: it can play HD video, based on Intel Core 2 Duo T8300 processor, 4GB SDRAM and NVIDIA GeForce 8600M GT with 512 MB VRAM. The model can also write dual-layer Blu-ray Disc.

Sony VAIO TP2 Home Entertainment Centre is really a home entertainment center. The updated version works on Intel Core 2 Duo T8100. It features Blu-ray Disc Combo and BRAVIA technology, so it can be connected with Sony BRAVIA TV sets. Besides the VAIO TP2 is packed in a stylish black shell.

EazzzY: tiny USB camera

Sungwoo Park has created an original USB called EazzzY. The device indeed features a flash drive size and nothing unnecessary. Packed in a tiny shell it has no room for a viewfinder, a display or buttons except for the main one, the camera button. However this compact solution outpaces all current models and supports direct PC connection via USB. However there are some doubts that such device will ever come to the market and be in demand.

Samsung i900 to see release in September

Mobifrance reports that its insider sources within Samsung hinted at the Samsung i900's release, first facts on which had been leaked into the Web some time ago. According to that data, the i900 is able tap in GSM/EDGE and UMTS/HSDPA networks and runs the brand-new Windows Mobile 6.1 Professional. Among its highlights are a 3,5-inch display with a resolution of 240x400 pixels, 5 Mpix camera, FM-radio, GPS, TV-out, microSD memory expansion slot, Bluetooth 2.0+EDR and WiFi connectivity. The source also provided an image of the communicator based on the Samsung F490's looks - as he claims, the i900 will look along the same lines.



As Mobifrance informs, the Samsung i900 will debut at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, and will start shipping in September 2008.