Samsung and AT&T have announced one rugged phone to their lineup, the SCH-a657. The phone features push-to-talk, a flashlight (which I just wrote about a few days ago, nice!), and MIL-SPEC certification for protection against dust, shock, vibration, rain, humidity, radiation and extreme hot/cold temperatures.
The Samsung a657 is a quad-band GSM/EDGE, dual-band 850/900 HSDPA, Bluetooth 2.0 with A2DP, and built-in GPS radios. The phone also supports microSD cards up to 8GB, Java applications and many of AT&T’s services as well. If this phone fits your profile then check it out on the AT&T business website.
How do you like that title? Let me break it down for you. The dual SIM card means you can have two different phone number allocated to one cell phone (you don’t need two separate phones). The quad-band means that the phone will work on international GSM networks. So now there is a phone that can have two separate numbers and work internationally. What phone is it? The phone is the Samsung B5702.
The B5702 provides two LED lights that indicate which SIM card is being used by an incoming call, and the interface can be personalized with various themes, melodies, and screensavers to recognize quickly which SIM card is in use. There are hot keys on the side of the phone that allow users to easily switch between the SIM cards without rebooting the phone. This is a HUGE plus!
The Samsung B5702 comes packed with features you would expect from a modern phone. You can check your e-mail and documents, enjoy full Web browsing supported by both SIM cards. The phone also boasts various multimedia functions including an audio player that supports various formats, video recording, a 3-megapixel camera, and an FM radio with Radio Data System (RDS) function.
The B5702 is due in various markets this year. I can’t wait.
There are a lot of things cell phones are, but water resistant is not one of them…..until now. Casio has developed the Exilim which is a flip phone with a 5 megapixel camera. The Casio Exilim will be available for Verizon customers sometime this year.
As you’ll see in the video below you can use the phone while you’re in the shower and do some other things with it as well. I’ll let you see what other things you can do in the shower with the phone…..
The HTC Touch Diamond has been making the rounds recently and now has dropped for Verizon Wireless customers. The phone will officially go on sale tomorrow. There won’t be any additional features that aren’t already available in similar Touch Diamond devices. The cost of the phone will be $299.99 after a $70 mail-in rebate with a new two-year customer agreement. With Verizon already having the LG Versa and Blackberry Storm it will be interesting to see how many of these sell. Not to mention the fact that the Touch Diamond 2 has already been announced (not for a specific carrier yet).
Here’s another luxury phone that is targeted for the rich and famous of the world. This time around we have the GoldVish Revolution. The Revolution is made by the famous Swiss watch maker GoldVish. The Revolution will sell for a whopping $500,000 with only nine being produced. The phone is covered in diamonds and gold. Below the keypad there is a watch, just in case you can’t read the time on the display. I guess it wouldn’t be a cell phone made by a watch company unless there was a watch built into the phone (think Ulysse Nardin Chairman Hybrid Smart Phone). No word yet on the specs or where the 9 units will be sold. If you really care to know, can I borrow some money!
Yesterday Sony Ericsson announced two new phones to their lineup, the S312 and the W205. The S312 is a classic style phone with a 2 megapixel camera. The camera can be used both for taking pictures and recording video. The S312 has a number of picture editing function built-in. Besides that there isn’t a whole lot of interesting features that can’t be found in any other cell phone. The S312 is slated to be available in markets starting Q3 2009.
The other phone, the W205, is your classic Walkman phone. This slider phone has everything you would expect from a “W” series phone. It has the ability to play MP3s and listen to FM radio channels. Other features of the phone include a 1.3 megapixel camera, MMS texting and Bluetooth. The W205 will be available in markets starting Q2 2009.
There is really nothing earth shattering about either phone. Both will no doubt be budget phones for consumers that are more interested in listening to music on their phones rather than surfing the web or having access to applications
The Samsung Impression is officially on sale for AT&T customers. The Impression is a touch screen phone with a full QWERTY slide out keyboard. If you’re looking for something different than the iPhone gives this phone a whirl. You can pick up the Impression for $199.99 with a two year contract a $50 mail-in rebate. When o when will ever stop with this two year contract nonsense!
I told you a while back about the Nokia E75 and now the phone is officially on sale. The Nokia E75 is the first Nokia phone have the new email user interface, offering full desktop email functionality, and complete integration of Nokia’s email and messaging services.
The Nokia E75 has a slide out QWERTY keyboard and efficient three-step email setup. Nokia Messaging is a service that opens up the world’s leading consumer email accounts – including Yahoo! Mail®, Gmail and Windows Live Hotmail – and is joined by Nokia’s corporate email clients, Mail for Exchange and IBM Lotus Notes Traveler, which provide direct access to over 90 percent of the world’s corporate inboxes as well. The E75 is meant to be THE business phone in Nokia’s product offering.
The Nokia E75 also integrates tightly to other Ovi services and ships with Ovi Files, for storing files online, Nokia Maps, which works with the onboard A-GPS, and Nokia’s games service N-Gage which is supported for the first time in a Nokia Eseries device.
I don’t think the Nokia E75 will overtake Blackberry’s in the US market as the premier business phone, but it could make some inroads if marketing properly. Only time will tell.
Kyocera wants to introduce you to their two newest phones, the G2GO M2000 and Laylo M1400. Both phones are being released under the new joint venture of Kyocera and Sanyo.
The Kyocera G2GO M2000 has a slide-out QWERTY keypad and Bluetooth® wireless technology to make messaging a snap via SMS, EMS, MMS, Instant Messaging, and IMAP/POP3 email. The phones has a 1.3 megapixel camera with dedicated key, digital zoom and photo editing. The phone uses an accelerometer to switch the 2.4-inch QVGA display from portrait to landscape orientation as the phone is turned. The G2GO also features a music player with dedicated keys and playlist management and a microSD card slot for up to 8GB of additional music and picture storage.
Additional features include built-in MP3 and polyphonic ringtones, screensavers, wallpapers and caller alerts, predictive text-input software for rapid text entry, Java™ support, a WAP 2.0 browser and BREW® 3.1.5 technology to download games, ringers, wallpapers, and more. Voice recognition features include voice tags, voice digit-dialing and voice response. Handy tools include scheduler, calculator, alarm clock, stopwatch, tip calculator, countdown timer, voice memos and airplane mode along with a directory that can store up to 500 contacts.
The Kyocera Laylo slides into style with a compact design that opens to a large, bright 2.2-inch contoured QVGA display for edge-to-edge screen viewing. Perfect for the on-the-go user, the Laylo features a slide-out self portrait vanity mirror on the back. A large keypad with tactile and visual separation makes for faster, easier typing. The phone has a VGA camera with digital zoom. The Laylo features Bluetooth® 2.0 wireless technology, a WAP 2.0 browser, and is both BREW® 3.1.5 and JAVA™ enabled.
Other great Laylo features include a speakerphone with dedicated key, speaker-independent voice recognition, MMS, SMS and instant messaging, a contact directory of 500 names with up to five numbers each and convenience tools such as alarm, calculator, scheduler, stopwatch, timer, tip calculator and world clock.
“The G2GO and Laylo support our current strengths as an innovative leader in handset manufacturing providing consumers with a blend of style, functionality and affordability,” said Eric Anderson, vice president of sales at KCI. “The integration of Kyocera Wireless and the former Sanyo mobile handset group is expanding those strengths to include higher-tiered handsets going forward while still providing functional, affordable and feature-rich devices like these.”
A few days ago I told you that I happen to run across the Samsung Finesse on the metroPCS website. At that point nothing official had been announced. Well today we get the official announcement from metroPCS. The Samsung Finesse is the first touch screen phone available to metroPCS customers.
The Samsung Finesse’s touch screen display, virtual QWERTY keypad and tactile feedback are designed with Samsung’s unique TouchWiz™ interface. The TouchWiz interface incorporates specially designed widgets that allow users to customize and personalize their phone, with instant access to their favorite functions.
The Samsung Finesse is available with the $50 service plan and is available for purchase in all metropolitan areas where MetroPCS service is available, which include Greater Miami/Ft. Lauderdale, Tampa, Orlando, Jacksonville, Atlanta, Detroit, Dallas, Los Angeles, San Francisco Sacramento, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, New York City and Boston.
“We’re excited to offer the first touch screen phone to MetroPCS customers,” said Bill Ogle, Chief Marketing Officer of Samsung Telecommunications America. “The customizable widgets and Internet access on the Samsung Finesse give users the ability to access their favorite features and other online applications with a single touch.”
