LG KU950

LG KU950

General 2G Network GSM 900 / 1800 / 1900
3G Network HSDPA 2100
Announced 2007, February
Status Available
Size Dimensions 102 x 52.6 x 18.9 mm
Weight 116 g
Display Type TFT, 256K colors
Size 240 x 320 pixels, 2.4 inches

Rotate 360 deg display
Ringtones Type Polyphonic (72 channels), MP3
Customization Download
Vibration Yes
Stereo speakers

Memory Phonebook 500 entries, Photocall
Call records 50 dialed, 50 received, 50 missed calls
Card slot microSD (TransFlash), buy memory

50 MB internal memory

Data GPRS Yes
HSCSD No
EDGE No
3G HSDPA, 1.8 Mbps
WLAN No
Bluetooth Yes, v1.1 with A2DP
Infrared port No
USB Yes, v1.1
Features Messaging SMS, EMS, MMS, Email
Browser WAP 2.0/xHTML
Games Yes + download, order now
Colors Silver
Camera 1.3 MP, 1280 x 1024 pixels, video, flash; secondary VGA videocall camera
DVB-H TV broadcast receiver
- Java MIDP 2.0
- MP3/AAC++/3GP/MPEG4 player
- T9
- Organiser
- Voice memo
- Document viewer
- Built-in handsfree
Battery Standard battery, Li-Ion 950 mAh

Samsung i780

The Samsung "i" line of smartphones have taken quite a lot of different shapes and seen OS implementations ranging from Symbian to Windows Standard and Pro. There are, however, five birds of a feather that do stand out with QWERTY keyboards and uniform design. Samsung i320 was the pacemaker, followed shortly by Samsung i600. There are of course the US-oriented Blackjacks Samsung i607 and Samsung i617.

Now, the subject of our review Samsung i780 is in that bunch but not quite, being the only PocketPC in the lot. Other Windows Mobile Pro devices seem nowhere in sight for the near future, with the two most recent i-series announcements both running on Windows Standard. The QWERTY slider Samsung i640 has just been released, while the low-key Samsung i200 is still cooking.

Key features

* Unique dual mode touchpad navigation
* Built-in GPS with A-GPS support
* Large 2.55" 320x320 pixels TFT touchscreen display
* Good preloaded content
* Innovative home screen plug-in
* Wi-Fi, Bluetooth with A2DP
* HSDPA, 3.6 Mbps
* Fast Marvell PXA3xx processor
* 256MB ROM and 128MB RAM (~ 150MB is user available)
* Full QWERTY keyboard
* 2 megapixel camera

Main disadvantages

* Unpopular display resolution creates poor compatibility with third-party software
* Camera has no autofocus, nor LED flash
* The num-pad is quite crammed

Samsung i780 sets a firm foot on the path trodden by Samsung i600, and brings a good set of hardware innovations and utilities. In brief, there's the dual mode optical joystick (or trackpad, if you prefer - seems Samsung haven't yet made up their mind either), the fast processor and 256MB ROM, built-in GPS with A-GPS support and a 2MP camera. On the software side, you get the homescreen sidebar (the Orange version only), Photo Slides, Mini Player, Contents manager, Java launcher, elaborate Wake-up alarm, etc.


Samsung i780 is powered by a capable Marvell processor and has 256MB ROM and 128MB RAM. The user available onboard memory is about 150MB. Given those values, the superb performance of i780 is no surprise. Just as a reference point, we played a near VGA quality XviD movie (with no video conversions) and it ran flawlessly. The movie playback passed with flying colors with only a couple of dropped frames in a 5-minute video.

Samsung stays faithful to microSD (TransFlash) memory card support to enable memory expansion. The memory card is accessible as a Mass Storage device from your PC, so the phone can also be used as a portable drive. That's with a twist though, as you need the Samsung USB cable - there is no standard miniUSB slot on this baby.

Both phone memory and the memory card are also accessible over TCP/IP and ActiveSync protocols making picture copying, ringtones saving, etc. a piece of cake.

Samsung F700

Samsung F700

The F700 is pretty much where it all began for Samsung and large touchscreens. It was their
first mobile phone to feature a three-and-above-inch touchscreen display while back in the
day 3 megapixel autofocus cameras were still high-end stuff. As time went by Samsung F490
and the Samsung Armani phone loomed into prominence, and there are a few more coming up. And guess what, none of them has the bulky QWERTY underside. That should tell you something.

General 2G Network GSM 900 / 1800 / 1900
3G Network HSDPA 2100
Announced 2007, February

Status Available. Released 2007, December
Size Dimensions 112 x 56 x 15.9 mm
Weight 139 g
Display Type TFT touchscreen, 256K colors
Size 240 x 440 pixels, 3.2 inches
- QWERTY Keyboard
Ringtones Type Polyphonic, MP3
Customization Download, order now
Vibration Yes
Memory Phonebook 1000 entries, Photocall
Call records 30 dialed, 30 received, 30 missed calls
Card slot microSD (TransFlash), buy memory
- 112 MB shared memory
Data GPRS Class 12 (4+1/3+2/2+3/1+4 slots), 32 - 48 kbps
HSCSD No
EDGE Class 12
3G HSDPA, 3.6 Mbps
WLAN No
Bluetooth Yes, v2.0 with A2DP
Infrared port No
USB Yes
Features Messaging SMS, EMS, MMS, Email, Instant Messaging
Browser WAP 2.0/xHTML, HTML
Games Yes, order now
Colors Black
Camera 3.15 MP, 2048x1536 pixels, autofocus, flash, video; secondary VGA videocall camera
- Java MIDP 2.0
- H.264/H.263/MPEG4 player
- MP3/AAC/AAC+ player
- Organiser
- Google Maps
- Document viewer
- Built-in handsfree
Battery Standard battery, Li-Ion 1000 mAh
Stand-by Up to 300 h
Talk time Up to 4 h 30 min

Nokia E90 Smartphone

Nokia E90 Smartphone

(GSM, Bluetooth, 3.2MP, 128MB, microSD Slot - MPN: NOKIAE90)

Price Range: $779.99 - $998.00 from 4 Sellers

Description: The Nokia E90 Communicator sets the standard for an uncompromised mobile office experience. The latest technologies at the core of the device bring business necessities and
personal amenities to the hands of people independent of time and p.... Read More
Description: The Nokia E90 Communicator sets the standard for an uncompromised mobile office experience. The latest technologies at the core of the device bring business necessities and
personal amenities to the hands of people independent of time and place. Fast and inexpensive connections over WLAN and HSDPA-enhanced 3G accelerate the mobile use of data- and transmission-rich applications. The interface to business and leisure applications and the Internet, the stunning Nokia S60 browser, with 16 million colors, is capable of displaying the full width of a web page at once. The Nokia E90 Communicator is now based on the S60 platform, making a wealth of additional mobile applications available for its users.
The Nokia E90 Communicator also has an integrated GPS and Nokia Maps application to provide help in finding routes and locating services. For increased personal convenience, the Nokia
E90 Communicator is equipped with an FM radio, a music player, a video player and two
cameras -- a 3.2MP auto focus camera with flash and a second camera for videoconferencing.

Points to Remember while buying Mobile Phone

Top 10 Buying Tips

1. Ask around about the best carrier. Coverage and call quality vary widely between the six national carriers. The carriers will tell you that they're perfect, so ask neighbors, friends, and co-workers about who has the best coverage where you live, work and travel.

2. Pay attention to battery life. A dead phone is no phone at all, so look for a phone's "continuous talk time" rating. Assume you'll be able to go a day without charging for each hour of talk time.

3. Test the speaker. Usually, you'll be able to make local calls with a test phone at the wireless store. Make sure voices come through loud enough and clear enough.

4. Take a hands-off approach when driving. Several states now require you to use a hands-free kit in your car. For a car phone, look for speaker-independent voice commands so you don't have to touch the phone to dial. Try to find a phone with Bluetooth wireless capability for the widest selection of wireless headsets.

5. Keep an eye out for nickel-and-diming. Your base plan may not include instant messaging, picture messaging, e-mail access or calls in rural areas. If you're going to do any of those things, make sure it's included.

6. Shop in person, but buy online. Always go to a store to check out phone keypads, screens and speakers. But check carriers' Web sites and independent retailers like amazon.com for online deals once you've settled on a product.

7. Lock yourself in. Advertised, super-low prices for phones almost always require signing up for a new, two-year contract. Read the fine print to find the price for a phone with a one-year contract. If signing any contract drives you to distraction, check out no-commitment phones like AT&T's GoPhone or Virgin Mobile's prepaid service.

8. Consider a family plan. These are always the best deal for couples or families with multiple phones. You share a bucket of minutes, each get your own phone number and can save up to 50% over getting separate plans.

9. Get the right bands for your trips. If you travel between US cities, make sure your phone has both 850 and 1900 Mhz bands for the best coverage. If you often travel in the rural USA, an analog band will help big-time. And if you regularly go overseas, get a 'worldphone' with the 1800 Mhz band.

10. Don't be afraid to give it back. Most carriers offer a 15-day period when they'll take a phone back, no questions asked. Use your phone heavily the first week after you buy it. If anything deeply disturbs you – muffled sound, dead areas, a limp battery – return it and get a new one.

Luxury Serenata, a High-End 4GB Music Mobile

Samsung and B&O team up for Serenata music phone
Bang & Olufsen and Samsung's latest mobile collaboration is the luxury Serenata, a high-end 4GB music mobile

Samsung has teamed up with Bang & Olufsen to produce a stunning luxury 4GB music phone, the Serenata.

Designed by Bang & Olufsen's in-house team, the Serenata combines an eye-catchingly unusual but elegant rounded design with cracking music features and state-of-the-art mobile operation.

The handset is packed with 4GB of solid state memory (plus an additional 25MB), capable of storing 1,000 music tracks, and comes with high-end music features including a built-in high quality hi-fi stereo speaker system. The Serenata can also play music through Bang & Olufsen's supplied EarSet3 earphones.

The Serenata is equipped with 3G HSDPA technology for high speed downloading, streaming and web browsing. Instead of regular key controls, It uses a click wheel navigation system complemented by "sensi-touch" control on the 2.26-inch display. The display changes colour from blue to red, depending on whether it's in phone or music mode, to make the interface more user-friendly.

The phone supports a variety of music formats including MP3, AAC and WMA files and the music player can run for 13 hours through its headset or 5 hours with the speaker . Regular mobile phone features, including email support, web browsing, stereo Bluetooth, USB connectivity, plus the usual messaging facilties.

The Serenata is the second phone resulting from the collaboration between Bang & Olufsen and Samsung, following the Serene, launched in late 2005. Its design is based on stones washed ashore, according to B&O designer David Lewis.

The Serenata will be released in November, with the price to be confirmed. But it won't be cheap.

Review

The mobile phone or mobile, also called a wireless, cellular phone, cell phone (AKA: cellphone), cell or hand phone (HP),is a long-range, portable electronic device used for mobile communication that uses a network of specialized base stations known as cell sites. In addition to the standard voice function of a telephone, current mobile phones may support many additional services, and accessories, such as SMS for text messaging, email, packet switching for access to the Internet, and MMS for sending and receiving photos and video. Most current mobile phones connect to a cellular network of base stations (cell sites), which is in turn interconnected to the public switched telephone network (PSTN) (the exception is satellite phones)