Archive for October, 2007

By October 31, 2007 Read More →

Samsung SGH-i620 review

The Samsung i620 is a darn good smartphone and here’s why:

INTRODUCTION

While everyone and their uncle have been waiting patiently for their Kaiser, I’ve been frustrated that other devices seem to have struggled for any publicity in the face of the behemoth!

One device that does continue to make news, is this Samsung i620, and expansys have helpfully supplied us with a review device.

Samsung SGH-i620 review

Samsung SGH-i620

Since Matt has been officially banned from reviewing this device, since he appears to be in love with the HTC TyTN II, I managed to steal the Samsung i620 and have been using it over the past few weeks.

The device has been used as my sole phone device, and has been travelling in car, down to the pub, and as my work mobile as well. It’s also one of only two non-HTC Smartphones I’ve used.

The i620, supplied by eXpansys, is as far as we can tell, a final retail device. So lets see what you get for your money.

 

What’s in the Box?

You may have seen Matt’s Samsung SGH-i620 unboxing video already but here’s what you get with the device.

A very slim box would appear to suggest there isn’t a lot to see within, but in fact, having got inside, there’s a great selection of accessories – some you’d expect, and some you wouldn’t. I’ll explain more about the multitude of batteries later in the review.

The Samsung branded box is nice enough, but they haven’t reached the heights of HTC branding, and fanciful packaging quite yet.

Inside you’ll find:

  • The i620
  • Mains Charger
  • USB Sync/Charge cable
  • Application CD with Activesync and software pack
  • ExtUSB hands free headset
  • Standard Battery
  • Extended Battery
  • Two battery covers (one for each battery)
  • External battery charger/holder
  • Manual & getting started guide

Samsung i620 Specification

  • Network: HSDPA / GSM 900 / GSM 1800 / GSM 1900
  • OS: Microsoft Windows Mobile 6.0 Standard Edition
  • Display: Type TFT, 65K colors, Size 320 x 240 pixels
  • Memory
  • Phonebook 1000 entries, Photocall
  • Call records 30 dialed, 30 received, 30 missed calls
  • Card slot microSD (TransFlash)
  • Data GPRS: Class 10 (4+1/3+2 slots), 32 – 48 kbps, HSCSD: No, EDGE: Yes, 3G: HSDPA, 1.8 Mbps
  • Bluetooth: Yes, v2.0 with A2DP
  • USB:Yes, v1.1 miniUSB
  • Messaging: SMS, EMS, MMS, Email, Instant Messaging
  • Browser: WAP 2.0/xHTML, HTML, RSS feeds
  • Camera: 2 MP, 1600×1200 pixels, video, flash; secondary VGA videocall camera
  • Java MIDP 2.0
  • WMV/3GP/H.263/MPEG4 player
  • WMA/MP3/AAC/AAC+/OGG/ASF player
  • Organiser
  • Document viewer (MS Word, Excel, PPT, PDF)
  • Built-in handsfree
  • Dimensions: 113 x 59 x 11.8 mm; 95 grams

GENERAL

Yes, 113 x 59 x 11.8mm is small, if a little wide. It reminds me very much of Orange’s C500/C600 phones, and must be up there with the slimmest of Windows Mobiles. It is a fair bit wider – to accommodate that full QWERTY keyboard, but it sits in the hand very nicely. Again due to its slim nature, it fits in the pocket nicely. I’m not sure of dimensions, but it can’t be that much wider than the original Motorola RAZR anyway. Certainly it’s a lot easier to carry about with me than my original TyTN.

On the front panel, we see the 320×240 landscape screen towards the top, and the main control set just below. These are in the main, all touch sensitive. There are no buttons for either the soft keys, call keys or Home and Back keys – just touch sensitive areas, which do seem very sensitive.

Samsung SGH-i620

Samsung SGH-i620

The lower centre area contains the wheel, and directional pad. The wheel itself is a free-flowing scroller, which for me works better than a jog wheel, with the added bonus of being a direction pad as well – push soft and spin, or push harder to click the direction pad. In the middle of all of this, is the action buttons, common to most Smartphones.

Sliding the phone to its open position, as the spring loaded mechanism hits it home point, a full QWERTY keyboard is visible. The keys are very, very small, and I was a little worried that my stubby fat fingers would struggle. Not so though – the gaps between the buttons, and the buttons themselves seem to be perfectly adjusted. The keyboard is responsive, and I can really hammer an email in quickly, without it missing a press.

Samsung SGH-i620 keyboard

Samsung SGH-i620 keyboard

Also included at the top right hand corner of the screen, is the utterly pointless forward facing camera. Does anyone still ‘do’ video calls? Well it’s there in any case!

The bottom of the device is nearly completely blank. A small mic hole is the only blemish on an empty bottom panel.

Samsung SGH-i620 bottom

Samsung SGH-i620 bottom

The right hand side is a little less sparse, with a “phone” button – this just brings up the system menu, containing flight mode activation, along with profile selection. This used to be brought up on Smartphones by tapping the power button – however, on the i620 this button is used to lock and unlock the device. Confused? Me to – but you do get used to it.

Samsung SGH-i620 right

Samsung SGH-i620 right side

Also housed on the right hand side, behind a rubber grommet, is the main charge/sync/audio port. It’s proprietary, and yes its annoying. Even more so because it appears to me that a mini-usb port would have fitted quite easily along the bottom. My guess is that there is probably a reason for it – I’m just not sure what.

Moving to the left hand side, we see the microSD slot – again hidden behind a well fitting rubber grommet, and below that, a up/down jog-rocker switch. This feel really comfortable to use – but annoyingly seems to have no use by default other than to adjust volume – it can’t be used to scroll messages or websites for example.

Samsung SGH-i620 left

Samsung SGH-i620 left side

On the reverse side of the i620, when closed we see a plain black battery cover, with the Samsung emblem, website address and ‘HSDPA’ designation. When we slide the phone open, the 2 megapixel camera becomes visible, next to a small mirror. When the phone is closed, the camera is completely protected against scratches and smudges on the lense.

Samsung SGH-i620 back

Samsung SGH-i620 back

Finally we move to the top of the device, and once again there isn’t a lot to see (Can you see the pattern emerging here). A solitary, recessed power button is on the right hand side, and it’s alone – nothing else to see.

Samsung SGH-i620 top

Samsung SGH-i620 top

SOFTWARE

This is where I was surprised. Although HTC are slowly adding bits and pieces of their own software, you don’t get a lot of software with their devices. They are usually very ‘vanilla’ to Microsoft’s operating system.

Samsung however have really come up trumps. The menu system has been edited and the structure reminds me of a dumb-phone. Easy when you need it, but complex when you need to dig a bit deeper and use things like file manager.

The jewel in the crown for me is in the ‘Internet Services’ menu. Yes we’ve got Pocket Internet Explorer – and Windows Live is also included (At least in this Samsung ROM), along with some Samsung specific software like an RSS reader and Podcast organiser. The single most useful add-on though – is Opera. Included in the base ROM, fully activated, trial-free. I’ve used it on pocket PCs – but if anything the Smartphone version is better. Far faster than PIE, and far more feature rich. It also supports the scroll wheel – and that coupled with the direction pad makes it nearly as easy to use as a full web browser on a PC – the software and hardware connection really is THAT good.

Clearvue document viewers are also installed – and don’t appear to be trialware – do need to check that though.

Samsung have also created little apps to group together, and improve the look of certain features. A good example of this is found in the ‘Applications’ area, and is called the ‘Organiser’. In actual fact, is just a collection of improved tools that are available by default in the smartphone OS, but aren’t always that easy to find. A much better Alarm’s section is available, voice notes are linked in, along with a world clock and something called “D DAY”

I always get a shock when looking for the Wireless Manager. I forget that this is a HTC addon and not part of the operating system by default. The samsung version is OK. Its functional, but certainly doesn’t look as refined as those found on HTC devices.

Finally a completely pointless, but ulimately lovely “Living World” homescreen is provided. This is an animated home screen, in which clouds and birds float in the sky of the image, and the lighting changes depending on the time of day. As I said – pointless, but it is implemented really well.

Highlights:
Size/Looks: This thing is small. It also looks amazing. I say without any concern that this is the best looking Windows Smartphone available. It’s exceptional, and when released, I’d hope it is marketed at everyone – not just as a business phone.

Keyboard: The sliding querty keyboard is excellent. Its responsive and doesn’t miss keypresses. The number pad is also integrated very well.

Battery life: The box contains two batteries – but I’m not sure why The difference in size is just a few millimetres, and although the standard size battery is in itself pretty good, I struggle to see why you would not just use the extended battery in day to day use.

Display: Razor sharp, if small. Colours are exceptional, and it looks and feels an expensive device, for this reason alone.

Lowlights:
No Wifi: I’m just starting to relealise the potential of Wifi in phones. Everywhere you go these days, there are wifi stickers in windows, and its a shame I can’t take advantage of the exceptional Opera browser in this way.

Slider mechantisem could be better: It’s by no means bad, and I think we were given a slightly ropey unit to be honest – but the slider isn’t exactly firm. Its a bit sloppy, and also appears to not fit right on the left hand side. I would hope this is a per-unit issue, and not a major problem affecting the majority.

REVIEW

Right so we’ll ignore the standard battery for now, and go straight in with the extended battery pack, and secure it with the extended battery cover (with me so far?!)

Turning on the power, we first see the Samsung “The Ultra Messaging” logo. This then pushes onto the Windows Mobile screen, and finally the Samsung logo and swirl animated startup sequence.

First things first, I need to get up some data connections. Due to it being an expansys device, this unit came setup for Vodafone. For my sins, I’m an Orange customer, so was about to dig out the settings. Being a geek, I was already playing about in the Control Panel, when I found a ‘Operator settings’ button. As suspected, this told me I was setup for Vodafone UK. Changing this was a doddle, and the software deleted my Vodafone settings, and helpfully set up GPRS, MMS, and everything else I’d need to Orange UK.

Samsung SGH-i620 open left

Samsung SGH-i620 open left

So now I’m up and running and straight away I’m in Opera to see just how good it is. Answer: Very. As I said earlier though, this is in part to the great hardware and key configurations. Its hard to fault Samsung with this device – it really feels like they have thought about what people will want from it, and how they will want to use it.

I’m already getting annoyed by the key-click sound so before I send off a round of SMS’s – I nip into the control panel again to turn this off, and also to engage automatic slider keylock. I don’t think I need to explain too much about what that is. Because of the touch sensitive controls though – I should point out that the End Call key does not work as you’d expect. Because of the risk of the touch sensitive buttons being touched during the call, the phone requires you to press the middle action key first, then press the key you want. Its not ideal, if understandable, so you might want to consider how much of an annoyance this would be to you.

Back to the messaging then – and what becomes apparent straight away is that when reaching for the ‘send’ softkey – I knock the home button and end up where you might expect. Leaving my message sitting there rather than being sent. I have over the days I’ve had the i620, got used to this, and became more confident with the phone in general. Even with smartphones and a stand OS – each new phone does have a slight learning curve, and there are no major issues with the use of the i620.

Samsung SGH-i620 open right

Samsung SGH-i620 open right

The QWERTY keyboard itself, as I’ve stated already is absolutely excellent. The size doesn’t seem to course any problems, and unlike a certain other device I’ve reviewed recently – it works absolutely 100% perfectly. The layout for symbols, and function keys is spot on – with all the main punctuation getting their own key.

The default profiles all seem OK – and in all honesty, I didn’t really have to do anything to the phone before I was happy. Its set up really sweet from the off. As you’d expect the sync ability is exactly like any other phone, and I quickly copied a mp3 ringtone to the phone via explorer/activesync with no apparent problems.

The camera application is OK. It’s very similar to the HTC standard app, but takes slightly longer to long. In reality though, its more or less identical, and since there is no problem with either – it makes it easier to switch between phones! It comes with a completely pointless digital zoom, but its there if you want it, and the video recording seems pretty nifty as well.

This is a nice bit of kit, but having had bug-ridden devices in the past – how does this compare? Very well actually. I’ve not had it fail, I’ve pushed it as best I can – and it hasn’t faltered. It isn’t the quickest device at times, but even when its got a lot to do – it does it well, and it hasn’t crashed at all, in the time I’ve used it. The Samsung ROM (and I’m told its typical of Samsung WM device ROMS), is solid as a rock. I’m not even sure what I could suggest to improve it.

i620 vs i600

i620 vs i600

CONCLUSION

This is the best Windows Mobile device I’ve ever used. Its exceptional, it looks great, feels better and is a joy to use. Other than the slight slider issues, the build quality is great and feels really robust.

The lack of Wifi and GPS will be killer for some, at least for the former, but for what it is – I don’t think there is a device that does it better.

I’ve got to send this review unit back now, and I really don’t want to. I’ll be buying it on Vodafone when it comes out (hurry up Voda!)

This device is the closest we have in the Windows Mobile world, to getting the hoards of teenage girls parting from their RAZR’s. It’s not quite there – but it’s very close.

100% recommended.

 

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By October 30, 2007 Read More →

T-Mobile Shadow announced

T-Mobile have announced the T-Mobile Shadow officially and are offering a web page for consumers to pre-register their interest. The Shadow will feature a custom interface for T-Mobile which endeavours to achieve T-Mobile’s aim for the Shadow brand which is to make it the ultimate social mobile device.

T-Mobile Shadow

T-Mobile Shadow

Phone Highlights

  • High quality, easy-to-use 2 MP digital camera with video capture.
  • One-click calendaring and alerts to stay closer to family & friends.
  • Simple, top-screen sharing of your favorite music.
  • Effortless messaging to keep in touch throughout the day.
  • Fun, top-screen picture sharing of special moments.
  • Blazing-fast Wi-Fi browsing to feed your discussions.
  • Expandable memory to store and transfer your music, pictures, and videos.
  • Additional Phone Features

  • Slide out QWERTY-like keypad
  • Speakerphone
  • Voice-activated calling
  • Stereo Bluetooth®
  • Direct access to multiple personal and work e-mail accounts
  • Four instant-messaging clients built in: Windows Live Messenger™, AOL® Instant Messenger™, Yahoo!® Messenger, and ICQ®.
  • 2.6 inch display, 320 x 240 pixels, 65k QVGA GSM/GPRS/EDGE/Wi-Fi display.
  • Micro SD expansion slot supporting up to 4 GB of optional removable memory.
  • Quad-band world phone (850/900/1800/1900 MHz)
  • Windows Mobile® 6®
  • Microsoft® Internet Explorer® Web browser
  • Microsoft Office document viewing and editing
  • Microsoft Vista® compatible
  • Wireless Exchange synchronization with Microsoft Exchange 2003
  • Easily syncs with Microsoft Outlook on a PC.
  • Posted by: Matt

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    Posted in: News
    By October 29, 2007 Read More →

    3 launches new Skype mobile phone

    Mobile phone provider 3 has launched a new handset that will allow users to make free calls over the internet via telephony service Skype.

    Users will also be able to use Skype’s instant messaging service, 3 said.

    But while people using Skype on their computers are able to make cheap global calls to any phone number, this will not be possible via the new 3 handset.

    Skype has about 246 million registered users worldwide and is one of the firms reshaping the global phone industry.

    To date, mobile phone companies have been unwilling to let users freely access Skype via their handsets for fear that it would hurt their business.

    While it is possible to access Skype from a number of handsets, this has involved downloading third-party software, something that has put off the majority of users.

    Posted by: Matt

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    Posted in: News
    By October 28, 2007 Read More →

    Mio Digiwalker P560 preview

    We just managed to get our hands on the new Mio Digiwalker P560 demo unit and thought we would share a couple of photos. As it’s a demo unit there is no unbox video yet, but that will be here online just as soon as we have the retail boxed version.

    Mio Digiwalker P560

    Mio Digiwalker P560
    Mio Digiwalker P560
    Mio Digiwalker P560

    The all new Mio P560 is the upgrade to Mio Digiwalker’s very successful Mio P550.

    With similar specification as the P550, the Mio P560 benefits from improved design and ergonomics as well as Windows Mobile 6 classic operating system.

    Windows Mobile 6 and a 3.5” display gives you increased functionality in dealing with your everyday tasks. View and edit Word and Excel files, view a PowerPoint presentation, all from the palm of your hand.

    Need to access your email away from the office? Simply utilise the 802.11b/g WiFi connection to download your emails with ease.

    Need to get somewhere? With an in-built SIRFStar III GPS receiver, satellite reception is fast and accurate, enabling you to travel easily to your destination (software required).

    For further functionality you can use the Bluetooth 2.0 connection to connect to other mobile devices and peripherals.

    When its time to relax, you can sit back and enjoy the media facilities of the Mio P560 thanks to Windows Media Player. Store movies, music and images on an SD or SDHC card and enjoy quality video and audio playback.

    Mio Digiwalker P560 Specification:

    • Windows Mobile 6.0 Classic
    • WiFi 802.11 b/g
    • Bluetooth 2.0
    • Built In GPS
    • SDHC/MMC expansion slot
    • Processor: 400 MHz
    • Memory: ROM 2048MB/RAM 64 MB
    • Display: 3.5” Colour transflective TFT , 240 x 320
    • Wireless LAN 802.11b, 802.11g
    • Satellite Navigation: SiRF Star III , 20 channels
    • 170 grams (battery included)
    • Dimensions: 72 x 115 x 17.8mm

    Posted by: Matt

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    By October 27, 2007 Read More →

    SanDisk Launches 8GB Mobile Cards

    SanDisk today announced the availability of its 8GB microSDHC and M2 flash memory cards to retail outlets worldwide. Compatible with the new breed of mobile phones with card slots, the 8GB SanDisk microSDHC and M2 cards are ideal for the growing number of consumers who make their mobile phone—with its built-in music player, digital camera and video player/recorder—the centerpiece of their digital lifestyle.

    Sandisk 8GB SDHC & M2 cards

    Sandisk 8GB SDHC & 8GB M2 cards

    SanDisk’s ongoing ‘slot education’ program is aimed at raising awareness both of the presence of a card slot in the majority of today’s new mobile handsets and the benefits available to those who use it. With a high capacity memory card in this slot, consumers can ‘Wake Up Their Phone’ and turn their handset into the ultimate lifestyle accessory, including the ability to store more than 2,000 digital songs, or more than 5,000 high-resolution pictures, or up to 5 hours of high-quality MPEG 4 video.

    Once digital content is stored on a high capacity SanDisk card, consumers can share their world with others, through simple uploading of content onto social networking sites such You Tube, MySpace and Facebook –allowing friends and acquaintances to share the experiences they have captured on the card. Content can be transferred through the mobile phone or through synching the card up with a PC.

    In celebration of the launch, SanDisk has teamed up with festival and event producers Guerilla Union (Rock the Bells, Paid Dues) for the “Sunset Strip Block Party,” an unprecedented event incorporating exclusive headline performances from world famous artists on the world famous Sunset Strip in Los Angeles, CA. The massive fete is scheduled for Friday, October 26, and will take place throughout three of the Sunset Strip’s most legendary nightclubs—The Key Club, The Roxy Theater and the Viper Room, making it the first event ever of its kind to use all three venues in unison. The event is the official kickoff for the SanDisk “Wake up your Phone” education campaign that will be continued throughout 2008.

    Performances from Linkin Park, Common, The Crystal Method, Cut Chemist (visual performance) and Z-Trip will come together to celebrate this historic event. Staying true to the campaign and the night’s ‘slot education’ theme, SanDisk is encouraging the invited guests to capture the event on their mobile phones.

    In addition to the microSDHC and M2 card, SanDisk also offers a broad range of both embedded and removable storage solutions for mobile handset manufacturers and mobile network operators. These include iNAND™ and mDOC™ embedded flash drives; microSD™, miniSD™ removable flash cards; and SIM and MegaSIM™ cards.

    SanDisk’s 8GB microSDHC and M2 cards are now available in major retail outlets worldwide with suggested retail prices of $139.99 and $149.99 respectively. For more details, please visit www.sandisk.com for details or your local retailer.

    Posted by: Matt

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    Posted in: Storage Devices
    By October 26, 2007 Read More →

    Astraware releases Solitaire Halloween Edition

    Astraware invites you to celebrate Halloween with a special spooky version of Astraware Solitaire.

    Solitaire Halloween Edition

    Solitaire Halloween Edition

    Astraware Solitaire – Halloween Edition includes all the features of the highly-acclaimed standard edition but with the addition of a brand new Halloween card back set and a more eerie default color scheme. Select your card back from a choice of werewolf, vampire, pumpkins, bats, mummy, witch, ghost, or spider!

    Astraware Solitaire includes 12 of the most well-known and best-loved card games in one easy-to-use pack. Each game offers customizable gameplay so you can play to your favorite set of rules, along with easily changeable color themes, backgrounds, card backs and fronts. It’s available for smartphones and PDAs running Palm OS(R) or Windows Mobile(R) and is compatible with a wide range of devices across both platforms.

    The Halloween Edition of Astraware Solitaire will be available for a limited time only with a special $5 discount off the regular price. Registration codes for the standard version will work in the Halloween edition and vice versa, so owners of Astraware Solitaire can download this special version for FREE!

    To download a trial or to buy, visit http://www.astraware.com/solitairehe.

    Posted by: Matt

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    Posted in: Apps & Games
    By October 25, 2007 Read More →

    AT&T Reveal the BlackJack II

    AT&T and Samsung Telecommunications America today announced the availability later this year of the BlackJack II, a sleek, smart and simple device powered by AT&T’s 3G-enabled BroadbandConnect network that has the familiar look and feel of your desktop with Windows Mobile 6. The BlackJack II had its first public showing today during a keynote address by Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer at CTIA Wireless I.T. & Entertainment 2007 in San Francisco.

    Samsung BlackJack II

    Samsung BlackJack II

    BlackJack II from AT&T brings the personal computer experience to a slim, compact device ideal for today’s mobile consumer. The powerful and performance-driven BlackJack II, which is available in slick black and red wine color options, features a full QWERTY keyboard, large 2.4″ QVGA color display screen and front jog wheel to elevate productivity and improve the mobile experience.

    Following in the footsteps of the highly popular BlackJack, the BlackJack II boasts an enhanced feature set, which includes:

    AT&T Video Share, the first service in the U.S. that enables users to share live video over the wireless phones while on a voice call. BlackJack II is the first AT&T business-oriented smart device to feature Video Share.

    Built-in GPS, Support for location-based applications such as TeleNav GPS Navigator™.
    Global phone capabilities. Tri-band 3G UMTS/HSDPA and Quad-band EDGE/GPRS technology takes advantage of AT&T’s industry-leading international wireless footprint for access to e-mail, the Web and other data applications in more than 135 countries — including Japan, South Korea and China — and customers can make or receive phone calls in more than 190 countries.

    An RSS Reader Client to compile syndicated Web content in a single location for easy viewing.

    Significant improvement in the standard battery capacity to get you through the day.

  • A 2.0-megapixel camera with video-capture capabilities.
  • Increased standard memory.
  • A louder and clearer speakerphone.
  • In addition to a robust feature set, BlackJack II provides users with access to multiple e-mail accounts, both personal and business, through Microsoft Direct Push technology with Outlook® Mobile and AT&T Xpress Mail™, which includes most major POP3/IMAP providers. The BlackJack II also offers over-the-air synchronization of contacts, calendar and task lists with Microsoft Exchange Server or AT&T Xpress Mail.

    “The BlackJack II takes one of AT&T’s most popular smart devices and adds to it a whole new level of functionality and capabilities,” said Jeff Bradley, senior vice president, Marketing and Operations for AT&T’s wireless unit. “This will provide business people and consumers alike with an even more powerful and complete communications and entertainment tool backed by the largest domestic and international wireless data footprint of any U.S. carrier.”

    “Samsung is proud to work with AT&T and Microsoft to bring the next-generation BlackJack to the U.S. market,” said Dale Sohn, president, Samsung. “We built upon the success of last year’s award-winning version of the BlackJack, our No. 1-selling smart device. This highly popular device allowed Samsung to develop BlackJack II with several design enhancements, making it the quintessential device for both work and play.”

    A Pocket-Sized Personal Computer
    With Windows Mobile 6, the BlackJack II brings a powerful personal computer experience to the small screen and improves how people do business on the go on a single device. The BlackJack II helps people keep track of schedules and contacts through Outlook Mobile, browse the Internet by using Internet Explorer Mobile, as well as manage Word, Excel and PowerPoint documents using Office Mobile. Windows Mobile 6 also supports HTML e-mail so that people can view and compose e-mail messages in their native format with live links to Web sites, support for images, tables and bullets.

    BlackJack II will be among the first Windows Mobile 6 devices from AT&T to support Microsoft’s System Center Mobile Device Manager 2008, which Ballmer introduced during his keynote address today. Available for BlackJack II in 2008, System Center Mobile Device Manager 2008 offers companies an end-to-end solution for managing and securing Windows Mobile devices. Employees will also have access to company information and a line of business applications from a single, secure place behind the firewall by using a cutting-edge Mobile Virtual Private Network (VPN).

    “Samsung and AT&T are delivering a worthy successor to the wildly popular first generation BlackJack,” said Pieter Knook, senior vice president, Mobile Communications Business at Microsoft Corp. “Windows Mobile 6 on the shiny, sleek BlackJack II is a great option to those wanting to run errands or take a walk in the park, all while staying in touch with important business and personal matters.”

    Posted by: Matt

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    Posted in: News
    By October 24, 2007 Read More →

    Samsung finally releases i600 WM6 upgrade

    After what seems like a looooong delay, Samsung finally released the UK Windows Mobile 6 upgrade for the Samsung SGH-i600 today.

    Samsung i600 WM6 upgrades

    Samsung i600 WM6 upgrades

    You can now download the WM6 update for your i600 from the Samsung upgrade site. The upgrade process will wipe everything from your device so make sure that you back up that important data first!

    Posted by: Matt

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    Posted in: Phones
    By October 23, 2007 Read More →

    Samsung announces new high capacity NAND memory

    Samsung has shown off what it claims is the world’s most powerful chip for use in memory cards.

    Samsung NAND Flash Memory

    Samsung NAND Flash Memory

    The 64 gigabit (Gb) chips could be used to make flash memory, commonly used in MP3 players, capable of holding the equivalent of 80 DVDs, the firm said.

    The chips are built using circuits with a minimum feature size of just 30 billionths of a metre (nanometre).

    Rival firm Toshiba has said it is also working with similar technology. Both firms will release products in 2009.

    Flash memory is a so-called non-volatile computer memory, primarily used in memory cards, USB drives and MP3 players.

    Non-volatile memory retains information even when there is no power to the device.

    Samsung said there was currently “exploding demand” for flash memory as a storage medium in a range of applications.

    The new chips are designed to be used in a specific type of memory known as NAND flash.

    NAND Flash is a special form of Flash memory. Flash memory is a memory technology that keeps data even when the power supply is cut off; this is known as a non-volatile memory type. Flash memory can be read pretty fast, but writing to Flash memory is pretty slow compared to many other -volatile- memory technologies such as SRAM or DRAM. Flash also has a limited number of write-cycles; manufacturers typically specify something in the area of 10,000 writes for the lifetime of the part.

    Posted by: Matt

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    Posted in: Storage Devices
    By October 22, 2007 Read More →

    VITO AudioNotes updated to v 1.32

    VITO Technology releases a new version of the bestselling program VITO AudioNotes – Windows Mobile mp3 and wav recorder. The new version loads much quicker. A new code for detecting calls makes it possible to record calls on most WM 5.0 & 6.0 Smartphones correctly. Quick Record that allows one button recording is now available for Smartphone users.

    VITO AudioNotes

    VITO AudioNotes

    Now call auto record function works more precisely and identifies the contact name on most Windows Mobile 5.0 and 6.0 devices correctly. So call records have the same name as corresponding contact.

    VITO AudioNotes loads quicker than ever as contacts loading is not necessary anymore. Besides, the list of recordings is loaded simultaneously with other functions of the program.

    Another important feature in the new version is when Calls auto record is ticked the program continues recording calls even after you exit AudioNotes.

    In the new version Smartphone users can start recording with a single button press. All none HTC Smartphone users can assign recording to speed dial (Quick Record in Start). Lucky HTC Smartphone users can use this function either as speed dial or as Pocket PC users do (Menu>Recording>Quick Record) by assigning one of the available buttons.

    VITO AudioNotes is available for $ 19.95 at http://vitotechnology.com. Updates are free for customers who purchased VITO AudioNotes within a year’s time.

    VITO Technology Inc. is known for its high-tech products in the field of Windows Mobile and Symbian software, GPS navigation and custom projects. Introduced in the present article VITO AudioNotes is a Windows Mobile MP3 and WAV recorder for Pocket PC and Smartphones.

    Posted by: Matt

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    Posted in: Apps & Games
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