News

iPhone launch date announced

Apple yesterday confirmed that the much-anticipated iPhone will launch on 29 June in the US.

Apple iPhone

The date was given in a series of TV adverts broadcast on Sunday, and was later confirmed by a spokesman for the California-based company.

I did find this line rather amusing:

The adverts on Sunday showed off several of the gadget’s features, including surfing the net, watching videos and scrolling through e-mails using a finger as a pointer.

Have we not had touchscreen features on Windows Mobile devices for years? Surfing the net? Hardly new. No mention of being able to make phone calls on it though! 😛

Posted by: Matt

Quote courtesy of the BBC news.

[Post tag(s): iPhone, Apple, OS X, Amazon, Tracy & Matt]

Orange unlimited browsing – NOT unlimited?!

It seems like almost everyone has been talking about the new Orange unlimited data packages that are supposed to be available soon. Since our post last month with the Orange Press Release regarding their flat rate announcement, many people have been asking when they’ll be able to go on the tariff.

Orange have been hoping that the new ‘unlimited’ tariff will compete with T-Mobile’s Web’n’Walk and encourage some people to come back to Orange.

So what’s the limitation on the unmetered tariff? You’ll notice that it’s subject to a ‘fair use’ policy. Orange consider the fair use limit to be just 30MB!! If this is true then I have to say “Orange, what are you thinking?!”.

I’d hardly call 30MB ‘unlimited’ or ‘unmetered’, so like a lot of other people, I think I’ll be off to T-Mobile now!

Posted by: Matt

SOURCE

[Post tag(s): smartphone blog, Pocket PC blog, Tracy & Matt, Unlimited Data, Orange]

HTC Cavalier unboxed and reviewed

The folks over at ‘On The Go Solutions’ have put together a brief review and unboxing video of the Dopod C730 aka HTC Cavalier.

The Bottom Line: Because the Dopod C730 has so many high-speed connectivity options coupled with a blazing fast processor, this new release really scores well. If you are looking for a thin, elegant Windows Mobile Smartphone that really has it all — this is the device for you.

HTC Cavalier Specification

Check out the review and video at ‘On The Go Solutions’.

Posted by: Matt

[Technorati tag(s): smartphone, Pocket PC, Tracy & Matt, HTC Cavalier, Dopod S730, HTC Excalibur]

Toshiba G900 on FCC

The Toshiba G900 has just appeared on the FCC site so should be a step closer to launch!

Toshiba G900

The G900, sometimes refered to as the Portégé or Satellite, is badged as the Satellite in the FCC external images but I suspect that it will be sold under the Portégé name in the same way as its little brother, the G500.

One interesting thing to note from the specification below is the mention of USB host mode which, if correct, will allow you to plug in external USB devices such as memory keys and hard drives!

Toshiba G900 Specification:

Read more on the FCC site.

Posted by: Matt

[Post tag(s): smartphone blog, Pocket PC blog, Tracy & Matt, Toshiba G900, Toshiba]

Samsung SGH-i620 appears

The first images of a rather sexy looking Samsung i600 replacement have just hit the web. The new device, the Samsung i620 has features similar to that of the i600 but has a sliding, rather than a fixed, QWERTY keyboard.

Samsung SGH-i620

Despite being a new device the current specs. mention Windows Mobile 5, however, if/when the device launches it may well have WM6 installed.

I’m a big fan of the Samsung i600 so I think the i620 will come as a welcome upgrade!

Samsung i620 Specification:

Posted by: Matt

[Post tags: smartphone blog, Pocket PC blog, Tracy & Matt, Samsung SGH-i620, Ultra Messaging, Samsung Windows Mobile blog]

HTC to annouce new handsets in June

HTC, the maker of the MDA range of Smartphones as well as the newly announce Ameo, is gathering journalists together on the 5 June around the world, for what it says, “will be a major announcement”.

According to the company, the announcement “heralds a new mobile experience that will change the way we use and control our phones”.

The invite, which is of a women touching the number five (see picture) implies that some form of touch sensitive controls will be involved.

We hope to be able to get to the event in London, so stay tuned for further developments!.

Posted by: Matt

[Post tag(s): smartphone blog, Pocket PC blog, Tracy & Matt, HTC]

Orange Netherlands to be sold off!

Orange Netherlands is to be sold off by current owner, France Telecom.

According to an article on webwereld.nl (Brush up on your Dutch!) the sale is taking place because France Telecom did not acquire the percentage of market share they had hoped to gain by buying the company in the first place.

Deutsche Telekom, the German owner of T-Mobile and fourth largest provider in the Netherlands, looks like the bookies favourite to purchase Orange NL and have put in an offer of 1.6 billion euros.

It looks like all those wonderful Orange SPV’s will disappear from the Netherlands, only to be replaced with T-Mobile’s lesser MDA range.

Posted by: Matt

[Post tag(s): smartphone blog, Pocket PC blog, Tracy & Matt, Orange Netherlands, Deutsche Telekom]

Symantec announces security suite for Windows Mobile

Symantec is set to broaden its mobile security product line by shipping new products designed for Microsoft Corp.’s Windows Mobile devices.

The software will come in two versions: a consumer product called Norton Mobile Security for Smartphones and Symantec Mobile Security 5.0, designed for enterprise users. Both versions will be available May 29, a company spokesman said Monday.

Symantec already sells a suite for phones based on the Symbian operating system, as well as antivirus software for Windows Mobile but these new products will support a much broader range of security features, Symantec said.

Norton Mobile Security for Smartphones will cost US$49.95. Symantec Mobile Security 5.0 will be priced at $79.95(:!:). Symantec will ship a similar 5.0 update to Symbian smartphone software in about six months, a company spokesman said.

Is it just me or does this seem like a real waste of time and money? How many virus outbreaks have their been on Windows Mobile? If this ‘Security Suite’ is as bloated as its desktop brother then I very much doubt it will run on any Smartphone yet made! :crazy: As for the cost, that’s about 10 times more than I would be willing to pay.

Posted by: Matt

[Post tags: smartphone blog, Pocket PC blog, Tracy & Matt, Symantec, Antivirus, Norton, Windows Mobile blog]

Samsung to provide free WM 6 upgrade for i600

Good news for Samsung i600 owners – according to sources at Smartphone-web Samsung will be providing Windows Mobile 6 for the Samsung SGH-i600 and what’s more, the upgrade will also be free of charge!

Samsung SGH-i600

Although this information isn’t truly official yet, we understand that Samsung Germany have already published the link for the upgrade, a release date has yet to be announced.

At the moment the upgrade is only for Samsung’s own version of the i600. As yet it’s not yet clear if Vodafone or Orange will offer upgrades for their branded version of the i600 as well.

Posted by: Matt

[Post tags: smartphone blog, Pocket PC blog, Tracy & Matt, Samsung SGH-i600, Windows Mobile 6, Samsung, Windows Mobile blog]

T-Mobile ‘Wing’ launched in USA

Some time ago we brought you news of the T-Mobile ‘Wing’ – the device that was set to replace the ageing MDA. Today saw the launch of the Wing on T-Mobile in the USA.

T-Mobile Wing

The T-Mobile Wing is based on the HTC Herald platform and is very similar in design to the HTC P4350 but is slightly slicker and includes the much coveted Windows Mobile 6 rom.

Over at BoyGeniusReports, they’ve got a device ahead of time and have some unboxing shots, including pictures of the device next to its P4350 sibling.

Maybe you were a little shy about purchasing an unbranded OEM HTC P4350, maybe you wanted a better price, regardless the T-Mobile should offer you the same device with a couple nice added features. Obviously the biggest selling point is that Windows Mobile 6 Professional is loaded right on. T-Mobile opted to have the case customized and to tell you the truth, it might be a tad thicker, but it almost feels nicer than the standard HTC Herald. The navigation buttons have been redone, also the Windows key, OK key, and a couple others were also changed. With a 200MHz processor it’s still a very speedy device, and WM6 only helps! Pricing as stated before — $499 full retail, $299 with a 2 year agreement and $50 mail in rebate.

T-Mobile Wing Specification:

Matt

Source

[Technorati tag(s): smartphone blog, Pocket PC blog, Tracy & Matt, T-Mobile Wing, HTC, HTC Atlas]