UpStage music phone has a few downsides

UpStage music phone has a few downsides

Gadget freaks are still buzzing about Apple's planned iPhone, a combination smart phone and music player that won't be available until June. Meanwhile, the traditional cell phone makers are continuing to churn out music phones that can be in the hands of consumers much sooner.

The latest, and most unusual, of these music phones has just been announced by Sprint. It's a Samsung model called the UpStage. The UpStage costs just $149, less than a third of the iPhone's planned $499 price, and it will go on sale this month.

Samsung has shown real creativity in solving the problem of cramming a decent music player and phone into one small gadget. The slim UpStage has been designed with two distinct faces. On one side, it has a phone keypad and a small screen, for making voice calls and tapping out text messages. But if you turn it over, you see a larger screen and navigation controls, mainly for playing music, but also for other tasks, such as viewing online data.

At the same time, Sprint is slashing the price of songs sold on its proprietary music service from an outrageous $2.49 each to just 99 cents. That isn't quite as cheap as it seems, because you have to pay $15 a month for the privilege of buying the 99-cent songs. But it's still a positive step for consumers.

I've been testing the UpStage and found that its two-sided design works pretty well. It's a better music phone, in my opinion, than Verizon's Chocolate model, built by Samsung's Korean rival, LG.

But the UpStage has too many weaknesses and compromises for me to recommend it. It has lousy battery life, both as a phone and as a music player, a limitation Sprint and Samsung have tried to offset with a free add-on that makes the phone too bulky. And it comes with so little memory that, out of the box, it can hold only around 20 average songs. Adding more capability costs extra, thus lessening the price advantage. There are other downsides as well.

I tested the UpStage primarily as a music player, because that's its claim to fame. I compared it with the base-model iPod Nano, which also costs $149, although of course it doesn't include a phone.

I did try out the basic phone stuff, like making calls, all of which seemed OK, though the screen on the phone side of the device is very small, a sort of throwback to early cell phones. Sound quality, reception and the keypad all were fine. The built-in 1.3 megapixel camera is standard for phones these days.

Only one of the phone's two screens can be used at any one time, and you have to press a "flip" button on the side to switch. This worked well, but was kind of a pain when I was trying to use the keypad to type in text, like a Web password or the name of a new song playlist, on the music side of the phone. I had to flip to the side with the keypad and then flip back.

I loaded in about 20 songs and the UpStage played them back pretty well, displaying all the correct song information and album art. I also loaded in some photos, which also displayed fine, though the phone can handle only small picture files. I purchased a song from Sprint's music service, and that downloaded and played well.

The only problems were that the album covers and photos looked grainy, because even the larger screen has pretty low resolution. And occasionally, the start of a song was clipped. The iPod Nano exhibits neither of these problems.

Out of the box, the UpStage comes with only a tiny memory card, which can hold only about 20 standard MP3 files. The iPod Nano can hold 500 of those files. To get the same capacity on the UpStage, you have to buy a larger, $40 memory card.

Though the UpStage is bigger than the iPod Nano, it has far worse battery life - just 2.5 hours of talk time for the phone and seven hours of music playback time, compared with up to 24 hours of music playback time for the Nano. To compensate, Sprint is throwing in a "battery wallet," a case with an additional battery built in. This brings the talk time to 6.3 hours and music playback time to around 17 hours. But it makes the phone twice as thick.

There are two other problems with the UpStage. First, synchronizing its music with songs stored on a PC requires you to install and use Sprint music software. It doesn't work with Windows Media Player or the Windows version of Apple iTunes, which most music lovers already own. (You also can manually drag and drop songs onto the phone's memory card.)

Second, the navigation pad on the music side of the phone can be confusing. It works by touch controls; you have to use just the right pressure and slide your finger just the right distance along its sides to get it to work right. It's too complicated.

Samsung and Sprint deserve credit for a good try with the UpStage. But it doesn't quite cut it.

Walter Mossberg writes about personal technology for The Wall Street Journal.

Rival services offer broadcast TV on a cell phone

Rival services offer broadcast TV on a cell phone

Watching TV on a cell phone usually involves either downloading short video clips or tuning into a live feed of cable channels that approximates radio more than television, the "moving picture" stuttering along in fits and starts.

Now, two rival services are taking a different approach: broadcasting video to your phone from wireless networks separate from those that handle calls. Both show early promise, at least relative to the jitter-fest that's the current state of cell TV.

Verizon Wireless struck first in early March with the launch of V Cast Mobile TV, a 24-hour broadcast of eight channels from major networks. The other service, Modeo, is not yet available to the public, but has been running a trial in the New York City area that I've been testing for the past month.

Judging from a brief glimpse at Verizon's service during a trade show this week in Florida, it's not a leap to say that, beyond differing channel lineups, Modeo and V Cast will look roughly identical to most users, though their underlying technologies are different.

Let's say right up front that Modeo's technology works better and more consistently than any cell TV I've seen before, and there's little reason to suspect that Verizon's service, powered by Qualcomm Inc., doesn't perform at the same level.

The picture quality on the cell screen, though not perfect, hums along well enough that voices match up with their talking heads on most TV shows and newscasts.

But sports, and any other action footage, is still shaky.

The handset, built for Modeo by High Tech Computer Corp. of Taiwan, seems to possess enough processing power inside to keep the picture from freezing up.

This is key, as even the latest high-end cell phones can't seem to grapple with the demands of video playback with any consistency. Samsung's BlackJack, for example, downloads video clips in a flash from AT&T Inc.'s Cingular Wireless high-speed network, but often sputters through playback.

Part of the problem is that device operating systems are being asked to juggle a growing number of tasks, from e-mail to music and picture-taking, and none as yet are up to the challenge.

Notably, the Modeo handset is no better when it comes to functions other than live TV, as it runs on Microsoft Corp.'s cumbersome Mobile Windows platform. That means, as with other Windows smart phones, the Modeo handset's screen freezes as you navigate the menus, occasionally getting stuck and requiring a reboot.

But when it came to watching TV, the same Modeo handset performed without the constant stumbles into operating system limbo. Battery life was also impressive, providing more than three hours of continuous TV on a single charge.

The video wasn't perfect, though. For starters, while the frame rate approaches broadcast quality, the "approaches" part becomes quite evident when you're watching sports, especially hockey and auto racing. Let's just say that objects traveling at 200 miles per hour seemed to jump around the track during the Daytona 500.

Reception, depending on where you live and work, can also be a problem. Although Modeo has blanketed the New York City area with 65 wireless transmitters, many atop skyscrapers, my home happened to sit in a network deadspot, and so there was no reception whatsoever.

While that may not sound like such a tragedy, given that most people have full-size regular TV to watch at home, I would have been less forgiving if I was a paying customer. For a monthly fee, I'd think most people would like to be able to use the service where they spend the most time, including home.

Both Modeo and V Cast suffer slight delays on channel changes, but the wait isn't horrible. Modeo says it will cut the delay to less than two seconds.

Perhaps the most notable difference between Modeo and V Cast was the channel guide. I can't imagine it'll be hard to fix, but Modeo's guide featured tiny uniform type with little more than boxes to set different channels and listings apart. Thanks to just a little color and bold lettering, V Cast's was far easier to scan.

In terms of screens, the first two V Cast handsets offer a nice wide-screen option. The display on the VX 9400 from LG Electronics Co. swivels to a horizontal position, while the SCH-u620 from Samsung Electronics Co. can be held sideways. Both have a pull-out antenna, whereas the Modeo's is internal.

While the novelty of cell TV is obvious, it's hard to figure whether consumers will see enough value in this type of service to pay $10 or more a month to get it.

It's easy to dismiss the notion of watching TV on a tiny cell screen, and yet the wireless industry has pursued this technology as manifest mobile destiny. The Watchman portable TV from Sony Corp. never caught on like its music-only cousin, the Walkman.

But to be fair, the Watchman was a stand-alone device -- and you couldn't call people with it.

By contrast, the cell phone is already entrenched as a worthy expense and daily appendage.

BlackBerry 8800's lack of camera a plus

Michael Lazaridis expresses great confidence in his company's BlackBerry 8800 phone/personal digital assistant device -- almost as much for what it won't do as for what it will.
During the recent Federal Office Systems Expo at the D.C. Convention Center, Mr. Lazaridis, president and co-chief executive of Research in Motion, explained that the 8800 doesn't have a built-in camera because in many corporations, enterprises and government agencies -- think of the Defense Department -- having a camera at hand isn't always a good thing.
This device, available from Cingular Wireless for as little as $299 with a two-year service commitment, elevates hand-held communications to a new level.
I hate to say it, but I have to imagine that my trusty Treo smart phones, the Palm Inc. products I've loved for so long, may have finally met their match.
The 8800 is larger than the BlackBerry Pearl reviewed here a few weeks back. It has a full "Qwerty," or typewriter-style, keyboard, a color display, and the BlackBerry e-mail system, along with support for up to 10 different e-mail accounts.
The unit has 64 megabytes of memory but can be augmented with "micro" SecureDigital or SD, cards of up to 1 gigabyte of RAM. The device is a quad-band GSM/GPRS and EDGE-enabled phone which, as with the Pearl, means it can operate in most of the world, and with high-speed data as well. And there's a Bluetooth connectivity feature that lets you use wireless headsets and other devices.
This new phone also incorporates the TeleNav Track Global Positioning System service, which is promoted as "an affordable enterprise-grade application" including location tracking, mileage tracking, wireless time sheets, alerts and detailed location reporting to capture field data.
Cingular, in a statement, said a "premium" TeleNav Track product can also be had, offering "wireless forms, dispatching, bar code-scanning support and voice and on-screen turn-by-turn GPS directions." The service costs an extra $13 or $22 per month, on top of phone and data charges.
In short, the BlackBerry 8800 can not only tell you that you have an appointment, it can tell you how to get there.
For most of us, I suspect, the key elements will be phone, e-mail, and Web browsing. In these areas, the BlackBerry 8800 is one of the most amazing devices I've come across. As a phone, it's as good as any device out there.
There's an included corded headset, if you don't want to use Bluetooth, and the built-in speaker and microphone are excellent. Dialing is relatively easy, although I wish there were an onscreen dial pad with the traditional "ABC" arrangement found on phones.
Web browsing is easy, although the lack of Java capability renders some Web sites unreadable. Such would be a problem on other hand-held phones with Internet capabilities, so I won't fault BlackBerry here.

Interest in Nokia's N95 "phenomenal" -Carphone

Interest in Nokia's N95 "phenomenal" -Carphone

Nokia N95

Carphone Warehouse (LSE: CPW.L - news) said on Monday it has seen phenomenal interest over the weekend in Britian towards the new top-of-the-range model N95 from the world's largest cellphone maker Nokia (Xetra: 870737 - news) .

The Finnish phone maker said it was seeing a good demand for its N95 model, which comes with integrated location mapping GPS chip and a 5 megapixel camera. It is priced at about 550 euros (372 pounds), before subsidies and taxes.

Carphone started to sell the model in Britain over the weekend and its finance director Roger Taylor told Reuters on Monday there had been "phenomenal interest in it."

Oppenheimer said in a note to clients the new N95 is currently sold-out at Carphone Warehouse.

"We've had a few thousand and they have been selling very quickly. It's possible that it's sold out," said Carphone spokesman Peregrine Riviere.

Nokia said it has seen good demand for the phone it started to ship to the key markets only on March 22, just over a week ago.

"Volumes are on a good level," said Kari Tuutti, spokesman for Nokia's Multimedia business unit.

"We are getting positive signs from the consumers, operators, and also other sales channels -- we are planning an aggressive volume ramp-up," he said.

AMD Imageon(TM) Media Processor Drives Multimedia Technology Behind Avant-Garde New

AMD Imageon(TM) Media Processor Drives Multimedia Technology Behind Avant-Garde New

SUNNYVALE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--AMD (NYSE: AMD - News) today announced that powerful AMD multimedia technology is concealed behind the sleek, elegant exterior of the new touch-screen PRADA phone by LG Electronics Mobile Communications.



Despite an ultra-thin profile of just 12 mm, the model KE850 PRADA phone by LG features such multimedia functions as a camera, video player and MP3 music player, all of which are driven by the processing power of the AMD Imageon(TM) 2282 media processor. To further enhance the user experience, this new GSM/ EDGE phone introduces a unique advanced touch interface that completely eliminates the conventional keypad.

"Today's consumers expect the most advanced technology on their mobile devices, and we work closely with leading global OEMs like LG to help them meet those demands as competitively as possible," said Paul Dal Santo, vice president and general manager of AMD's Handheld Division. "The new PRADA phone by LG offers a beautiful blend of style and performance, packed with the kind of cutting-edge multimedia that consumers crave."

"Building on our expertise as a leader in both consumer electronics and mobile communications, we set out to design a unique work of art with style and appeal," said Alice Ryu, vice president of LG Electronics Mobile Communications.

To enable the best possible experience for viewing videos, photos and documents, the PRADA phone by LG features an advanced, extra-wide 3" WQVGA-resolution touch screen interface that covers much of the phone's surface. Additional features that set this mobile phone design apart from the ordinary include a 2 Mpixel camera with a Schneider-Kreuznach lens, a video player and an external memory slot.

The model KE850 PRADA phone by LG is expected to be available from PRADA and various phone retail stores during the second quarter of this year in France, Germany, Italy, the UK and parts of Asia, the Middle East and South America.

About the AMD Imageon Family

AMD Imageon media processors support a variety of multimedia functions, including mobile TV, video, photography, video telephony, music and 3D graphics processing. To date, more than 200 million AMD Imageon media processors have been shipped to mobile device manufacturers.

With the acquisition of ATI Technologies in 2006, AMD is the leading supplier of media processors to the handheld market, with more than 50 AMD-powered handheld models available in the market from leading manufacturers including BenQ-Siemens, HTC, LG, Motorola and Samsung, among others. For more information, please visit http://ati.amd.com.

About AMD

Advanced Micro Devices (NYSE: AMD - News) is a leading global provider of innovative processing solutions in the computing, graphics and consumer electronics markets. AMD is dedicated to driving open innovation, choice and industry growth by delivering superior customer-centric solutions that empower consumers and businesses worldwide. For more information, visit www.amd.com.

© 2007 Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. AMD, the AMD Arrow logo, AMD Imageon, and combinations thereof, are trademarks of Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. Other names are for informational purposes only and may be trademarks of their respective owners.

MULTIMEDIA AVAILABLE: http://www.businesswire.com/cgi-bin/mmg.cgi?eid=5369666


Contact:

AMD
Jo Albers, 512-602-3526 (PR)
jo.albers@amd.com

Source: AMD

A Cell Phone Service for 'Tweens

A Cell Phone Service for 'Tweens

Does your 'tween need a phone? Maybe the answer is yes, more likely no. But you know she wants one, and so does kajeet, a start-up from Bethesda, Md., which has designed a phone service directed at 'tweens and their parents.

Kajeet is unveiling a pay-as-you-go phone service, featuring three handsets from LG, Sanyo, and Nokia, with a twist designed to court parents' favor: No activation or termination fees, no hidden charges and no roaming or long-distance costs, either. After you buy the phone, you pay a base of 35 cents a day, as well as 10 cents a minute for talk, 5 cents per text message (in and out) and 25 cents for each picture sent or received.

Any parent knows those small numbers can get big fast, even with a 'tween, especially one enamored with the newfound gift of talking and texting. So kajeet has some built-in tools to help parents and kids set budgets and boundaries when learning how to use a cell phone.

Parents can establish a set amount of money every month—think of it as a phone allowance—that kids can decide how to use however they choose, either calls, text messages, sending photos, or downloading games, ring tones, and wallpaper. If they spend too much on one or the other, the thinking goes, they'll learn how to budget their communication money and time. (By the way, a child will always be able to dial their parents' and 911, even if the funds run out.)

Parents and kids can also decide together when the phone should be off, then schedule it to really be off during those times. Kids and parents call also decide who can call or text to a child's phone by adding and blocking certain phone numbers.

Kajeet's phones and service will be available through Best Buy and Limited Too stores beginning May 1, and on the kajeet web site. Sprint provides the nationwide wireless coverage.

Kajeet's approach is similar to Disney Mobile's, but as kajeet founder and CEO Daniel Neal notes, kajeet offers more than one brand of entertainment options, including Nickelodeon, Cellmania, and Gameloft, on its phones. "Kids want to be able to turn the channel," he said.

In case you weren't sure that these phones were designed to be toys for 'tweens as much as communication tools, the Sanyo Katana that arrived for review just before I spoke with Neal came with a sheet of stickers. It also comes preloaded with some games, kajeet ringtones, wallpapers, and screensavers. My 'tweens will be oh so happy to learn when they walk in the door from school that we'll be testing it out. Look for my (our) review on kajeet's service soon.

LG/Harris team on local mobile TV broadcast system

LG/Harris team on local mobile TV broadcast system

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Harris Corp. (NYSE:HRS - news) and LG Electronics Inc. (066570.KS) said on Tuesday they have teamed up to develop a wireless technology to broadcast local digitaltelevision programming to mobile devices such as cell phones, car media players or handheld televisions or DVD players.

The technology will compete with existing systems that beam television to mobile phones and follows a display by Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd (005930.KS) of a competing portable broadcast system at the U.S. consumer electronics show in January.

U.S. cell phone providers already offer video clips or in some cases full-length shows on handsets, but LG said its technology would be the first to enable TV stations to broadcast local programming to portable devices using the same airwaves they use to broadcast to regular living room TVs.

The system, which would involve an upgrade of existing broadcast transmitters, would cost about $100,000 to $500,000 to install per station, depending on the size of the market and how many channels were involved, according to a spokesman for Harris, a supplier of transmission systems.

John Taylor a spokesman for LG, which makes everything from cell phones to washing machines, said LG has had initial talks with broadcasters, but has yet to announce any customers for the technology, known as Mobile-Pedestrian-Handheld.

The companies will demonstrate the technology for the first time at the National Association of Broadcasters show in Las Vegas later this month.

LG expects to have chips available later this year, Taylor said. Device makers would also need to agree to support the technology, but the type of devices used would depend on broadcasters' plans he said.

In some U.S. markets, Qualcomm Inc. (Nasdaq:QCOM - news) unit MediaFlo USA already broadcasts live national TV to Verizon Wireless phones, including a phone made LG. Verizon Wireless is owned by Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ - news) and Vodafone Group Plc (VOD.L).

PinStack Launches BlackBerry Professionals Job Board

Recruiters can now post Jobs on PinStack and instantly reach it's audience -- more than 500,000 visitors and 2.5 million page views per month. In addition, PinStack visitors can browse BlackBerry Jobs that fit their career path free of charge.

blackberry_jobs_small.jpg

The Blackberry Job Board is powered by the JobCoin job board software. "There are a wealth of talented BlackBerry professionals who are not browsing traditional job boards," said JobCoin CEO Keith Schacht. "The BlackBerry Job Board... helps companies who need to hire BlackBerry professionals reach these talented individuals [that read daily."

"This is an excellent alliance for us!" said PinStack Founder, Hayden James. "A large portion of PinStack's visitors belong to the IT industry who will welcome this new service. A glance at the Jobs already listed and it's clear that this new service opens up great opportunities for BlackBerry Professionals and the Companies seeking them."

If your company is looking to hire BlackBerry admins, developers, support staff, or sales/marketing staff in the BlackBerry space - we think the PinStack audience is the ideal place to search. If you have immediate position to fills, contact phartge(at)jobcoin.com about posting a job right away so you it can be listed for the launch of the new job board.

The Pinstack job board can be found at BlackBerryJobs.PinStack.com.

About JobCoin
JobCoin helps employers reach their ideal job candidates and provides website publishers with a new source of revenue by including highly relevant job listings on their site. Ultimately, JobCoin seeks to change the way candidates and employers connect. JobCoin is a privately held, privately funded company based in Chicago, IL. For more information, please visit http://www.jobcoin.com.

About PinStack
PinStack is a Discussion-Based Community focusing on BlackBerry Professionals which has developed into the largest and fastest growing online BlackBerry community of well over 100,000 registered members. PinStack offers everything BlackBerry related including discussions, downloads, discounted Software & Accessories, user guides, reviews and more. Further information visit: www.pinstack.com.

Contact:
Hayden James, Founder
PinStack
Phone: 268-764-5003
hayden.james @ pinstack.com

Nokia N800: Its Cool, But Is It A Game-Changer?

Nokia N800: Its Cool, But Is It A Game-Changer?

Dean Bubley submits: What is it with Nokia (NYSE: NOK - News) at the moment? I ve been at 3 conference sessions during March where a representative has turned up brandishing their N800 Linux-powered WiFi tablet, and then given a presentation focused almost entirely on it and Nokia's peculiar notion that it somehow completely redefines computers to be "Internet optimised".

Typically the events were about telecoms or VoIP. Yes, sure there are some VoIP clients that run on it, but its hardly the number one usage case for the N800. I cannot believe that internally, Nokia believes this class of device will ever carry more than 1% of the world's VoIP traffic, let alone overall voice.

nokia n800Yet in at least one of the presentations, both PCs and mobile phones (and also handheld gaming consoles) were dismissed as essentially legacy devices. That "everything will be Internet-based", and that "bundling network services and a SIM" was an old business model.

Now even I, a fairly ardent supporter of most open-IP principles & a detractor of walled gardens and SIM-authenticated WiFi, do not take things that far. Sure, there will be some hugely interesting and important innovations will mean that VoIP, WiFi and pure Internet-resident capabilities become viable challengers for many users' spend and time. But equally there are certain things that licenced spectrum - and licenced operators - are actually pretty good at, which will mean that tied device+service combinations are not going to disappear.

More confusingly, I don't understand why Nokia feels it necessary or appropriate to pitch the Web Tablet type device as a PC or notebook alternative. An alternative to UMPCs, OK, I can buy that. But even Nokia has to appreciate that the web isn't just following Moore's Law on processor speeds and memory - it's also being driven by LCD display pricing, which is why more PCs and Apples ship with 20" screens, and many laptops are similarly-endowed: it ain't for spreadsheets, it's for better Internet and multimedia display.

I'd understand it all a bit better if the N800 had a slide-out keyboard, or even a decent camera, but in its current incarnation it's not even optimised for "user generated content".

To be honest, I find Nokia's positioning of its broader N-Series smartphone devices as "multimedia computers" a little contrived too. "The device formerly know as the cellphone"...oh, please.

I suspect that all this may be an attempt to put clear water between the N-Series and the more operator-centric approach taken by the Mobile Phones division. But to be honest, there's really not that much difference between an N73 and most of the Series-60 phones developed in the other units. Sure, most of the N9x devices are probably sold through non-operator channels, but I think it's too early for most buyers to think of them as anything other than cool phones.

Nokia Introduces CDMA Model in its L'Amour Collection

Nokia (News - Alert) has brought a new level of sophistication to the CDMA market by launching the Nokia 7088. As the first CDMA model in the popular L’Amour Collection the Nokia 7088 apply this collection’s remarkable design language to a sliding configuration.

Customers will be drawn towards the model’s jewel-like select key and carefully sculpted directional pad set into a metallic frame. The bold leather-inspired textures on front and back surfaces of the Nokia 7088 enhance the tactile experience, and further accentuate the artful balance between technology and nature that is the hallmark of the L’Amour Collection’s design ethos.

“The Nokia L’Amour Collection has been enthusiastically received by design minded individuals around the world. We are pleased to be able to bring this bold expression of style and taste to CDMA customers,” said Larry Paulson, vice president and general manager of Nokia’s CDMA business in a press release.

He continued: “The Nokia 7088 is certain to attract instant attention with its beautiful form and generous set of features. Coupled with Nokia’s hallmark quality and easy-to-use interface, we are sure that customers will have a great long-term relationship with it as well.”

Users can easily activate the integrated video recorder and camera with LED flash with the dedicated key. This allows captured images and video clips to be enjoyed on the extra-large 128 x 160 pixel color display found on the Nokia 7088.

The Nokia 7088 also boasts a two-way speakerphone, voice recorder and calendar feature. The model also enables on the go information access with the built-in mobile browser.

The attractive and productive Nokia 7088 will be available in selected markets in Asia/Pacific, Middle East, Africa, China and Latin America during the second quarter of 2007.

Nokia is a provider of mobile communications, driving the growth and sustainability of the broader mobility industry.

Nokia 5700

The 5700 features a twist design that switches between four modes at the flick of the wrist - music player, 2.0-megapixel camera, video call and smartphone. Using an optional 2 GB microSD card, the Nokia 5700 supports up to 1500 tracks that can be enjoyed using Bluetooth stereo headphones. Loading songs onto the 5700 is fast and easy as consumers can choose from a broad range of supported digital formats, including WMA, MP3, AAC, as well as eAAC+ and MP4. The Nokia 5700 brings videos to life on a vibrant color screen supporting up to 16 million colors for excellent video playback. With 3G high-speed data connectivity, the 5700 makes browsing, downloading and streaming multimedia content convenient. A video call feature and the built-in 2.0-megapixel camera make it easy to share moments with friends and family.

Amp’d Mobile and Motorola Announce the MOTO Q for Mobile Entertainment

Amp’d Mobile and Motorola Announce the MOTO Q for Mobile Entertainment

Amp’d Mobile unveiled the MOTO Q, Amp’d Edition from Motorola, a MOTO Q designed for experiencing mobile entertainment.

The MOTO Q, Amp’d Edition from Motorola is aimed at today’s youth market who thrive on entertainment and social networking.

PhoneMag Image
Featuring one of the slimmest QWERTY designs on the market and Windows Mobile 5.0 software, the MOTO Q, Amp’d Edition from Motorola is the ideal device for work, play, staying connected with friends and more. With advanced EVDO technology, 320x240 vivid display, rich multimedia content and stereo sound, this phone was built to serve up big doses of Amp’d’s broadband mobile entertainment.

Additionally, Amp’d is the first US carrier to utilize Adobe’s Flash Lite technology as the main user interface. With this technology, consumers will experience Amp’d Live’s robust broadband content and programming lineup to its fullest potential, including streaming TV, Amp’d Original programs, music, viral videos, 3D multiplayer games, ringtones, wallpapers and more.

The MOTO Q, Amp’d Edition from Motorola features include:

* Live TV: Watch Live TV, live events, videos and more (MTV, E! Entertainment, Comedy Central, Adult Swim, FOX Sports, Amp’d Supercross Series, Ultimate Fighting Championship)
* Amp’d Originals: Exclusive Amp’d Original presentations like “Lil’ Bush,” “Lil’ Hollywood,” “Doggy Style,” “Venice Beach” and others that you won’t find anywhere else
* Social Networking: Stay in touch with the complete messaging suite – Text, IM, email. Full (QWERTY) keypad makes for lightning fast communication
* Stereo Bluetooth Wireless Technology: Allows you to listen to music without wires from a compatible Bluetooth enabled music device making the MOTO Q, Amp’d Edition from Motorola your entertainment hub
* Music and Video on the Go: Experience music on the go like never before – music videos, over half a million downloadable 99¢ songs, and exclusive Amp’d Studio Sessions
* Personalization: Only with the MOTO Q, Amp’d Edition from Motorola can users personalize their device with wallpapers and ringtones from the extensive Amp’d catalogue
* Social Organization: Sync with Microsoft Office and keep your Contacts, Calendar and Task Lists
* Entertainment Network: Amp’d Mobile customers enjoy the security of knowing that Amp’d delivers America’s best wireless entertainment network

MTC Kuwait Deploys Motorola Solution

Motorola application services will optimize speed of mobile data and improve network operational efficiency for MTC Kuwait

Motorola, Inc. today announced an agreement with MTC Kuwait to optimize the speed of data services on its network and increase overall operational efficiency.

Under the agreement, MTC Kuwait will deploy Motorola’s Global Applications Management Architecture (GAMA) solution including systems integration and advanced network optimization services which are designed to enhance the mobile data capacity of the operator’s network and improve the performance of mobile data applications even over low-bandwidth connections. The enhanced network will enable users to access mobile web pages and email on the move at a faster rate than previously.

“Providing high quality service is one of the most important aspects of our operation at MTC Kuwait, as is continuous improvement of the data network speeds to meet our customers' expanding mobile communication requirements,” said Barrak Al Sabeeh, general manager, MTC Kuwait.

“There is a growing demand from our customers for mobile data services – applications such as push email – that require a fast and reliable connection to deliver real value to the user. The Motorola GAMA solution that we have rolled out will enable us to deliver the level of service that users require, and add new users to the network, all without having to make substantial new investment in infrastructure, thereby realizing efficiencies,” Al Sabeeh added.

The Motorola GAMA solution accelerates the delivery of data to mobile devices such as PDAs, laptops and mobile phones, and also enables the network to accommodate additional users as required.

“The Motorola GAMA solution, including system integration and network optimization services, offer a wide range of benefits to service providers such as MTC Kuwait. The seamless deployment means that customers will gain the benefits of a faster service, allowing them to get more out of their mobile applications, which in turn encourages them to use those applications even more,” said Ali Amer, vice president, Middle East, Africa and Pakistan, Motorola Networks & Enterprise.

“For MTC Kuwait, this network optimization ensures full utilization of resources so that new customers can be added easily and efficiently, enabling the operator to get optimal return on investment from its infrastructure,” Amer concluded - Motorola.

LG VX8600 Phone

Released for Verizon Wireless, the LG VX8600 provides a sophisticated and sexy look sure to turn heads. Following the successful international launch of the Chocolate phone, the VX8600 offers a similar design on a clamshell form factor. At first glance, its sleek, ultra-thin shape and glowing, touch-sensitive keys will grab the attention, but a closer look reveals irresistible features VCAST for music and video, Bluetooth capabilities, a 1.3-megapixel camera and camcorder, a microSD memory port for extra storage

Dial in to cell phone gaming

Dial in to cell phone gaming

"Sonic the Hedgehog," "Tetris" among favorites

Cell phones have been doing more than simply enabling owners to rack up substantial bills through calling friends and family members for a long time now. When it comes to wasting time between classes - or even, let's face it, during classes - cellular service providers now offer an overwhelming choice of games and distractions to choose from, if you're willing to pay.

Cell phone games have long since matured from the days of "Snake," in which a line of blocks grows larger as you move the pixilated line to eat food, or the rudimentary football games in which one dot would pass a smaller dot to a slightly larger dot.

In just a few years, things have moved from a simple version of "Tetris," to complete 3-D shooter games like "Dirge of Cerberus," one of the many "Final Fantasy VII" spin-offs that exist.

Ryan Dauphin, a freshman majoring in finance, said the only mobile phone game he really plays is "Solitaire."

"There's not a lot of smart phone software out there," he said. Dauphin said he owns a Motorola Q phone through Verizon Wireless.

He said he prefers to watch TV on his phone rather than play games.

When he does want to play a game on his phone, he said he doesn't like to do it through his phone carrier, which charges as much as $12 for one game.

"I procure them by alternate means," he said.

Clint Odom, a sophomore majoring in computer science, said the only game he has is "Sonic the Hedgehog," based on the classic Sega Genesis game.

"I used to own a whole bunch of games, but I switched services, so now I [hardly] have any," he said.

Odom said "Sonic" cost him about $7.

His old service was T-Mobile, but he switched to Verizon Wireless recently, he said.

"I don't play 'Sonic' very often, because it runs down the batteries really bad," Odom said.

He said with his experience, most games and extra features on phones do the same thing.

Games don't matter when picking out a phone, he said. Instead, he picked the phone he has now because of its music capabilities.

"It's kind of funny," Odom said. "I bought it for music, but I can't get the V-Cast thing to work, so I can't put any music on my phone."

According to wirefly.com, the most popular phones of 2006 were the Cingular, T-Mobile and Verizon Motorola RAZRs, so finding games for the RAZR is a rather easy task.

With older phones, games are less complex, with no 3-D options or splendid gameplay, while newer phones might have 3-D action, and games look about on par with the original PlayStation.

Browsing for games through different companies is easy online, but most cell phone carriers will allow users to buy games through their phones as well.

Games are simply tacked on to bills at the end of the month for contract owners, and deducted from minutes with a pre-paid phone.

According to their Web site, Cingular's most popular game is "Tetris" for $6.99. That's followed by "Wheel of Fortune" at $2.99 a month and "Bejeweled" at $5.99. Cingular generally allows cell phone owners to download games to their phone and keep them until they change the phone, with exceptions for some subscription-only games like "Wheel of Fortune."

Verizon Wireless works differently, according to the Web site. Games can either be charged monthly or as an unlimited purchase. Its most popular games are "Centipede," "Monopoly" and "Sonic the Hedgehog" for $3.49 a month or $7.99 unlimited.

T-Mobile does not have its games available online for viewing and can only be downloaded from users' cell phones.

Sprint's most popular game is "Tetris" for $3.49 a month or $6.99 unlimited, according to the Sprint Web site.

With tons of games from each provider, it would be difficult not to find a game worthy of at least trying out - if the price doesn't seem too high.

Shifting trends in cell phones hurt RF Micro

RF Micro Devices is a cornerstone of Greensboro's economic future.

It's a homegrown company that makes high-tech microchips for cell phones. It will soon employ nearly 2,000 people in well-paying, advanced manufacturing jobs and has been promised $15 million in state and local incentives for various expansions.

But its future may depend on global fashionistas who barely know what a microchip looks like.

RFMD, which sells its chips to such major phone makers as Nokia and Motorola, rattled investors last week when it said earnings will drop because a top customer is experiencing a slowdown. Its stock price has dropped more than 10 percent since Wednesday to close around $6.23 Friday.

Officials with RFMD did not return calls seeking comment. But in a news release, Bob Bruggeworth, president and chief executive officer, said, "There are certainly challenges in the near term as we navigate through product cycles both at RFMD and at our leading customers in the coming quarters."

Analysts immediately pointed to Motorola, which said just a week earlier that it will lose money in its next quarter.

Could it be that Motorola's ultra-thin Razr phone is now in the shadow of a new species of even thinner "slider" phones?

Analyst Tero Kuittinen certainly thinks so.

Motorola has a huge backlog of phones it hasn't sold, he said. "You've seen those Verizon ads on TV with 50 percent off Razr phones?" said Kuittinen, a senior product specialist for Nordic Partners, a brokerage firm.

"It damages the brand. It's possible that the RFMD warning is simply to the fact that Motorola may have canceled huge chunks of orders left and right. You sometimes see this massive shift in market share that really leaves the companies scrambling."

That may be a sobering fact to economic developers in the Triad, who are just recovering from the implosion of the textile and apparel business here.

But Rob Bencini, director of community and economic development for Guilford County, believes an industry that is relentlessly innovative, as RFMD is considered to be, is going to stay ahead of technology and fashion.

"If you keep thinking the marketplace is going to stop with you, it's not," Bencini said. "It's going to keep moving. They can't afford to stop innovating."

Kuittinen says, though, that companies such as RFMD can suffer at the whims of the average buyer.

If RFMD's chips aren't in the hottest cell phone styles, it could be out in the cold -- until trends turn again.

"It's a fashion business," he said. "People have said that it's a commodity business, but you don't see these huge shifts in consumer preference in a commodity business. Over the past two years the phone has become more and more a fashion item."

And global preferences, not necessarily those of U.S. consumers, shape the market that RFMD is serving.

It's proof to Bencini that the global economy is permanently woven into the Triad economy. Cheap labor in Asia and Mexico killed the textile business here. Trends in other nations will affect advanced manufacturing here as well.

But advanced manufacturing -- jobs that require refined skills and pay well -- is the best and most likely future for Triad workers.

RFMD represents that and technology, an industry that Greensboro economic developers are investing time and money into nurturing, Bencini says.

"People talk a lot about advanced manufacturing. That term's almost become pass? because all new manufacturing will become advanced manufacturing or it won't occur," he said.

Meanwhile, RFMD and its investors await the quarter's financial results from Nokia, its biggest customer, which will be released April 19. If it's a good report, all will be well, Kuittinen says. If not, the market may be in a slump and RFMD will have something to worry about.

"You need engineering to design the phone," he said. "What's driving demand is the look of the phone, not what it can do. They're just really looking for the hot-looking phones."

Contact Richard M. Barron at 373-7371 or dbarron@news-record.com

Nokia, Motorola Widen Lead on Record Handset Sales (Update2)

Nokia, Motorola Widen Lead on Record Handset Sales (Update2)

Nokia Oyj and Motorola Inc. widened their lead over Samsung Electronics Co. on increased sales of cheap mobile phones in Asia, according to a Gartner Inc. report.

Nokia, the world's biggest maker of mobile phones, increased its market share to 36.2 percent from 35 percent a year earlier, the Stamford, Connecticut-based research company said in a statement today. Second-ranked Motorola's share rose to 21.5 percent from 17.8 percent, while Samsung, the third- largest manufacturer, fell to 11.3 percent from 12.1 percent.

Motorola and Nokia are focusing on markets such as China and India to boost sales of low-cost handsets in rural areas, as well as high-speed, or 3G, models that allow users to surf the Internet and make video calls. China is the world's largest mobile-phone market by users, while India is the fastest growing, adding more than 6 million customers a month.

```Nokia's brand is the most valuable in the emerging markets,'' said Karri Rinta, an analyst at Handelsbanken Capital Markets in Helsinki. ``Motorola has kept its share in China and is targeting India.''

Gartner predicted global handset sales of about 1.2 billion units this year after shipments soared 21 percent last year, bolstered by markets like China and India.

Espoo, Finland-based Nokia and Schaumburg, Illinois-based Motorola also increased their market shares sequentially and for the full-year as did Sony Ericsson Mobile Communications Ltd.

``Overall, you see Nokia, Motorola, winning more market share,'' Carolina Milanesi, principal research analyst at Gartner, said in an interview. ``These two players are present in all regions, price points and technologies.''

Asia-Pacific

Fourth-quarter unit sales climbed 21 percent to 284.2 million units, led by a 56 percent jump in the Asia-Pacific region, Gartner said. In 2006, shipments amounted to 990.8 million devices, an all-time high. Nokia benefited from having the widest portfolio even as it has been criticized for its mid- tier range, Milanesi said.

Nokia in January predicted industry handset sales to rise as much as 10 percent this year from 978 million units sold in 2006. Milanesi said in a ``worse-case scenario'' the industry would sell 1.1 billion devices. Researcher Strategy Analytics Ltd. last month estimated the market to reach 1.14 billion units, up 12 percent.

Shares in Nokia, whose own market share forecast for the fourth quarter was in line with Gartner's, gained 22 cents, or 1.4 percent, to 16.40 euros as of 11:26 a.m. in Helsinki, while Ericsson AB, which owns half of Sony Ericsson, rose 0.2 krona, or 0.8 percent, to 24.80 kronor in Stockholm. Motorola gained 31 cents to $18.83 in New York yesterday.

Profit Margin

Nokia and Motorola have introduced new handsets aimed at winning market share in each others' strongholds. While Nokia has focused on slimmer models, its U.S. rival has concentrated on multimedia devices with music players and cameras.

Motorola's profit margin at its phone unit shrank to 4.4 percent of sales in the fourth quarter from almost 12 percent in the previous three months as it cut prices to challenge Nokia's lead in emerging markets. Profit margin at Nokia's Mobile Phone division, its largest unit, climbed to 17.8 percent from 15.3 percent, excluding one-time items.

Milanesi said Motorola ``lost steam'' in the latter half of 2006 and it faces a ``challenging'' start for this year after Ron Garriques, head of its mobile-phone unit, left the company.

Sony Ericsson

Sony Ericsson, which overtook LG Electronics Inc. as the fourth largest handset maker in the first quarter, boosted its share to 9 percent from 6.9 percent a year earlier. The London- based joint venture between Japan's Sony Corp. and Ericsson AB of Sweden has attracted consumers with high-resolution cameras on its phones and handsets that use Sony's Walkman brand and double as music players.

``It's a safe portfolio, we would like them to diversify,'' Milanesi said. The company may continue to increase its market share in the short-term, she said.

Market share at Samsung fell in the quarter from the year- earlier period and sequentially, as sales growth at the Suwon, South Korea-based company rose at a slower pace than the market.

Milanesi said the company has focused more on new technologies to please phone companies at the expense of end users.

The following is a table of the six biggest handset makers by unit shipments and market share in the fourth quarter of 2006, with comparisons from a year earlier and the previous quarter. The figures were compiled by Gartner.

Units Q4'06 Share Q4'06 Units Q4'05 Share Q4'05
(millions) (percent) (millions) (percent)
Nokia 102.8 36.2 82.2 35.0
Motorola 61.0 21.5 41.9 17.8
Samsung 32.0 11.3 28.4 12.1
Sony Ericsson 25.7 9.0 16.1 6.9
LG 17.8 6.3 16.9 7.2
Sagem 4.4 1.5 4.2 1.8
Others 40.5 14.2 45.4 19.2
Total 284.2 100.0 235.1 100.0


Units Q3'06 Share Q3'06
(millions) (percent)
Nokia 88.1 35.1
Motorola 52.0 20.7
Samsung 30.6 12.2
Sony Ericsson 19.5 7.8
LG 15.0 6.0
Sagem 4.0 1.6
Others 41.8 16.6
Total 251.3 100.0

To contact the reporter on this story: Juho Erkheikki in Helsinki at jerkheikki@bloomberg.net .

Nokia-Palm Buyout Reports Baffle Some Experts

Nokia-Palm Buyout Reports Baffle Some Experts

Recent reports that Nokia Corp. is in talks to buy Palm Inc. surprise some analysts, who nonetheless said some type of buyout might make sense and could even be a good thing for customers.

According to news reports, the pioneering handset maker has been talking with possible suitors and Nokia has emerged as the frontrunner for an acquisition, though investors might simply take the company private. Earlier reports said Motorola Inc. wanted to buy Palm.

Palm is profitable and increasing sales but faces tough competition and has stumbled recently. It has sold fewer devices than analysts expected in recent quarters, in part because of delays in getting products out, said Casey Ryan of Nollenberger Capital Partners in San Francisco. New products from Research In Motion Ltd. and other rivals have also eaten into Palm's market share, Ryan said. The whole high-end phone category is drawing many new entrants with flashy devices, including Apple Inc. with its iPhone.

Palm was instrumental in creating the market for PDAs (personal digital assistants) in the 1990s but has moved with the rest of the handheld business to devices that can also be used as phones. Its Treo smartphones, which come with either the Palm OS or the Microsoft Corp. Windows Mobile platform, are now Palm's bread and butter.

A Palm purchase by Nokia would mark a sharp turn for the Finnish cell-phone giant, analysts said. Nokia is focused on the OS developed by Symbian Ltd., of which it is a major owner, and its own operating systems, Needham's Ryan said. Although it has had trouble selling its high-end phones in some areas outside Europe, such as the U.S., Nokia has always insisted its operating systems were better than the competition's. Bringing the Palm and Microsoft platforms into its lineup would be like Apple's chief
Steve Jobs unveiling a Windows PC, he said.

"To me, it would seem to be a very challenging press conference," Ryan said.

Even if Nokia swallowed hard and admitted it needed Palm OS and Windows Mobile, the company would be faced with steep hurdles in corporate integration, he added.

A private buyout would make more sense, the analysts said. Palm is a basically sound company in a growing industry and could appreciate strongly over the next few years, according to Ryan. A reported price of US$20 per share seems reasonable, he said. On Thursday, Palm's shares (PALM) closed at $16.49, down $0.06.

Private investors could turn out to be heroes to Palm OS users, according to Greengart. They could shield Palm from the harsh glare of quarterly earnings expectations, possibly freeing management to make the big investment required to bring Palm OS up to date, he added. Despite several changes in direction and ownership over the past few years, the software has remained largely the same except for the addition of video capability, he said.

Nokia N76

Nokia N76

Available in black or pink (though it could be red), the N76 is a
cool looking clamshell with a sturdy set of features. Featuring an 2MP
camera, microSD and a 2.4 inch display.

Key features


2.4 inch display


S60 3rd Edition software on Symbian OS


2.0 megapixel camera (20x digital zoom)


Web Browser


26 MB internal memory


microSD card support


Bluetooth

Release date: Before April 2007

Nokia N800

The N800 is a “internet tablet” which features wifi, QWERTY keyboard and Linux based operating system

Key features


Linux based Operating System


800×480 pixel display


Full QWERTY keyboard,


Wi-Fi


Bluetooth


Webcam


Battery life: 10 days (standby) 3 hours high usage

Release date: already

Nokia also announced the previously leaked N93i which appears to be
a sliimer upgrade to the Nokia N93 with some improved styling.

Sony Ericsson have finally announced the W880i

Sony Ericsson have finally announced the W880i (codenamed ‘Ai’) Walkman handset, after months of speculation. Sony Ericsson first confirmed the W880i at the beginning of January, but until today the final specifications of the device have been kept behind very tight lips. In London today all the details were spilled: a 9.4mm thin 3G Walkman handset with a 2mpx digital camera, 1GB Memory Stick Micro, stainless steel finish, and much more.

The thinnest Walkman handset to date, the 9.4mm profile will definitely rival other super-slim handsets on the market. The stainless steel finish (available in black or silver) on the W880i gives it a touch of class, while the orange hints to the W880i’s fun side: the multimedia functionality.

The W880i makes an impressive start with a 262,144 colour TFT LCD with a 240 x 320 (QVGA) pixel resolution.

Features
# Ultra slim design (9.4 mm thin)
# 2 megapixel camera
# Memory card slot with hot swap functionality
# 3G support with video calls
# Walkman 2.0 music player
# Bluetooth 2.0 with A2DP stereo audio profile
# Multi-tasking support
# TrackID music service
# 1GB Memory Stick Micro M2 included in the package
# Included headset has a standard 3.5 mm audio adapter

Review By Sonyericsson

At just 9.4mm thin, the W880/W888 is the slimmest Sony Ericsson phone yet and combines the full Walkman phone experience with a device that fits easily into your pocket. The 1GB Memory Stick Micro provided in-box gives you room to store up to 900 full length tracks*, whilst the host of innovative music applications (such as Walkman Player 2.0 Disc2Phone) make it easy to get music onto your phone in the first place search through play lists once its there. All of this, plus a 2.0 megapixel camera, is packed into a UMTS phone that’s as slim as a standard CD case.