Nokia 8800 Arte Review by 3G.co.uk

Nokia 8800 Arte Review by 3G.co.uk

With a SIM-free price tag of almost £700, the Nokia 8800 Arte really needs to pull out all the stops, and quite rightly, everything in the handset’s package screams class, from the included accessories to the packaging.

Unfortunately, you do get a lot of box for your phone, so Nokia loses environmental points for its freight-induced carbon footprint. However, considering the phone’s price tag, you may hang on to the box so that it can be stored, cosseted and safe, while not in use.

In fact, the Nokia 8800 Arte also comes with a neat leather protective pouch which fits like a glove. It’s such a tight fit that the pouch includes a black ribbon to help you extract your phone from its home when you need it. Another freebie with the 8800 Arte is the Nokia BH-803 Bluetooth headset, which is a work of art in itself and complements the phone beautifully.
Let's face it, if you spend £670 on a phone, you'll want to show it off. Thankfully, the 8800 Arte also comes with a shiny, yet solid, black charger cradle which both charges the phone and presents it like the expensive business toy that it is. The base also flashes subtly to indicate the phone's charging status, which is quite a nice touch.

Nokia 8800 Arte design verdict

Like the charger cradle, the 8800 Arte is satisfyingly solid and heavy and is constructed from the finest smoked glass and composite metals. With the slider shut, the 8800 is minimalist chic – an expensive-looking blend of black metal and glass with a simple chrome metal trim which acts as a protective buffer for the slider as it opens and shuts with a loud, satisfying clack.
As for the buttons, you get a simple joypad and two soft keys (which light up when the phone is activated), which is perfectly adequate. The rear of the phone is just as sparse, but with a matt finish and the solitary camera lens. It’s simply gorgeous.

Full Review with more photos and specification here

Heavy Duty Protection for your BlackBerry Pearl

Otterbox, the phone case manufacturer, has released a heavy duty protection case for the Blackberry Pearl. The case is called 1936 Defender case.

The Defender case has three protective layers providing bump, scratch and drop protection:

Layer 1: Thermal formed protective clear membrane to safeguard screen and keyboard against scratching as well as dust and dirt* (layer optional depending on the level of ruggedization desired).
Layer 2: Hi-impact polycarbonate shell.
Layer 3: Silicone skin absorbs bump and shock (silicone includes innovativeretaining features to hold it in place). Weight (case only): 1.6oz.Dimensions: 4.45" x 2.20" x 0.86"

Otterbox cases can be viewed here

HTC Touch Cruise Review by 3G.co.uk

HTC Touch Cruise Review by 3G.co.uk

The HTC Touch Cruise is a bit of an enigma. It’s feature heavy, and with a distinctive design, but here at Mobile Choice we just don’t think it has the ‘wow’ factor to really sit at the top of our list of ‘most desirable’ Windows Mobile smartphones.

Touch Cruise Touch-screen

The Touch Cruise’s 240x320-pixel screen is sharp, bright and clear, and is flush to its surroundings. This is unusual for Windows Mobile devices, which more usually have recessed screens.

Visually, the flush screen is stunning, but, as we find so often with this design, it doesn’t respond as well as we would like when tapping the screen. It isn’t a huge issue, but you do need to take extra care, especially if you use a fingertip rather than the more accurate stylus. You may also find that the screen is prone to scratching. A screen protector may be in order, which rather mars the good looks of the flush design.

Navigating the Touch Cruise

We are, however, big fans of the fabulous navigation button. As
well as its usual up, down, left and right options, you can rotate the button under a finger. This scrolls you through the contents of the screen, highlighting options, and when you get to what you want, you press the central button to select.

Built-in GPS smartphone

It seems that built-in GPS is becoming a pretty common feature in smartphones. You can use the Touch Dual in wide-screen format for navigation, which helps it resemble stand-alone navigation systems.

There is Wi-Fi and HSDPA on-board the device, so your data communications should be fast and furious. And a front-facing camera is in a prime position for video calling.

Meanwhile, the main camera shoots stills at halfway decent three megapixels. HTC has come up with a user interface that makes it really easy to get around the various settings. You can even flick straight into the camera album at the tap of an on-screen button.

Full review with many more photos here

Vodafone Sat Nav now available

Vodafone has announced its Sat Nav service will now be made available to consumers , but only on a limited set of handsets.

Vodafone Sat Nav provides users with a complete mobile navigation experience, including both in-car and pedestrian navigation. Featuring 3D maps that enhance the navigation experience, up-to-date maps and directions it also gives the customer instant access to live traffic alerts and millions of points-of-interest such as hotels, restaurants, shopping and attractions.

Vodafone Sat Nav is available on a variety of consumer mobile devices; launching initially on three of Vodafone UK’s GPS embedded handsets – Nokia N95, Nokia N95 8GB and Nokia 6110 as well as the new BlackBerry® Pearl™ 8110 smartphone. The subscription to the service costs £5 per month with the first month free. When using the service data charges apply. Customers can purchase the service from any Vodafone retail stores, through telesales or directly from Vodafone live! Customers who purchase the BlackBerry Pearl 8110 will get 12 months Sat Nav included.

The solution has already been successfully launched into the enterprise market, where it is available on a number of devices including the BlackBerry® Curve™ 8310, Vodafone UK’s fastest selling BlackBerry smartphone ever, and the BlackBerry Pearl 8110.

BlackBerry Curve 8320 Review by 3G.co.uk

BlackBerry Curve 8320 Review by 3G.co.uk

Upon first glance, you may think you’ve seen the BlackBerry Curve 8320 somewhere before, and you’d be right. It’s remarkably similar looking to the Curve 8300 – the first of the trim and tidy Curve range. The 8320, however, is small enough to fit into a pocket yet big enough to incorporate a usable QWERTY keyboard, which results in an ideal mobile email device.

Small and clever

Smartphones in the BlackBerry Curve series are the smallest and lightest smartphones with a full QWERTY keyboard, and its 111g makes it something of a featherweight in the pocket. It is hard to believe that a full 320x240-pixel screen and a keyboard are crammed into its tiny frame.

The keyboard is particularly noteworthy. Given the small individual key size we were surprised at just how easy it is to use. We found ourselves able to type at a decent speed, which is precisely what you want from a mobile email device.

BlackBerry Curve 8320 multimedia

Research in Motion, manufacturer of the BlackBerry, knows that it faces stiff competition from multimedia-rich smartphones that can play music, stream video and take superb photos. So the company is trying to make its business-focused smartphones attractive to multimedia-conscious consumers. The Curve 8320 gets part way there, housing a decent two-megapixel camera, and allowing you to play videos through the media application. This same application lets you play tunes, but the controls aren’t as sophisticated as they are on some smartphones. You can’t create playlists, for example, though you can on your PC through the Roxio media manager software that comes with the device. We do have to credit the inclusion of a 3.5mm headset jack, but wish it were on the top edge of the casing rather than the left side just for the sake of pocket-ergonomics.

Full Review with many more pictures and full specification here

Ronnie O'Sullivan Snooker 2008 Mobile Game Review

Ronnie O'Sullivan Snooker 2008

If, like us, you only get excited about snooker once a year, this new Ronnie O'Sullivan mobile game may at least prolong your potting jow. One one level, it's a pretty standard snooker game, with a top-down aiming view and a choice of views to actually watch your superb pot (or not).

The best bit is the game's career mode though, which lets you take on some of Ronnie's best moments from his entire career, from a callow teenager through to today. It's not something we've seen in a sports game before, but works really well. If you're a snooker fan, you need this game.

Samsung announce i640

The Samsung i640 , the successor to the i620, has appeared on the Vodafone shop and is available now in the UK.

The i640i features the same slider design that was present in the i620 and the main features are listen below.

The phone is tri-band GSM/GPRS handset with 3G

Weight 126g
Talk Time (up to*) 6h
Standby time (up to*) 380h
Dimensions 95 x 61 x 16 mm
Phone book capacity Variable
Video call time 150mins
SMS Storage Variable
Active Flip
Downloadable Realtones
Data Modem
Voice Memo Recorder

Additional Features
Bandwidth 900 / 1800 / 1900
Camera: 2.0 Megapixel
Intergrated Memory card slot

The Phone is available from Free on Contract.

BlackBerry Owners Lounge Launched

Rim have launched the BlackBerry Owners Lounge, which is a portal for Blackberry owners.

The Blackberry Owners Lounge gives owners : Exclusive special offers, free downloads, the latest news and your own personal resources. And everything you need to make the most of your BlackBerry® smartphone

Right now in the Lounge Blackberry Owners can

Download free games.
Save 15% on BlackBerry Authentic Accessories.
Free Mr & Mrs Smith Membership.
Get Discounts on best-selling games & applications.
Win a stylish weekend away.
And much more – all personalised especially for you

Buy BlackBerry Phones Here

Samsung Solid Review by 3G.co.uk

Samsung Solid Review by 3G.co.uk

Just like buses, you wait ages for a burly, robust handset and then two come along at once. The Samsung M110, better known as the Samsung Solid, was originally billed as the ‘World's Toughest Phone.' We think someone might have forgotten to tell Samsung about Sonim's JCB Toughphone, a phone we were openly encouraged to try our best to destroy. Samsung, it seems, was no longer quite as confident, asking if we could refrain from driving over it, throwing it out of a window or drowning it in water. Bah humbug! In Samsung's defence, it has since changed their stance arguing that the Solid is built to withstand the odd bump and fall, rather than be indestructible a la the JCB Toughphone.

Samsung Solid rubber casing

The Samsung Solid certainly feels sturdy enough. It's actually lighter than the JCB Toughphone, and feels impressively so for a solid candybar. The Solid is actually encased in a thick rubber body that feels more part of the handset than the Toughphone whose rubber body feels as though it was more of an afterthought. But could this body armour withstand an ‘accidental' fall from our desk? Yes it could, without so much as a scratch on it. Perhaps due to the rubber cushioning, the phone made little noise when it hit our wooden floor. However, unlike the JCB Toughphone, we cannot definitively say that it will survive a fall from a second floor window, but we can confirm that it can withstand the odd knock or fall.

Samsung Solid keypad

Billed as a phone ideal for tradesmen, it would be fair to assume that a number of these trades might involve wearing gloves. As with the JCB Toughphone, we gave the Samsung Solid the glove test, seeing how easy it is to locate and press the keys on the handset. While the keys themselves are slightly bigger than the Toughphone's their close proximity means it is not easy to identify them individually. Indeed one of the Solid's unique selling points is the embedded flashlight found at the back of the handset. The light itself is surprisingly powerful, especially as the source is slightly smaller than a pea. However, the on/off button is adjoining to the power button and while switching the flashlight on and off we accidentally turned off the handset on numerous occasions.

Full Review with More Photos and Specification Here

Nokia Morph : The Flexible Phone

Morph, a joint nanotechnology concept, developed by Nokia Research Center (NRC) and the University of Cambridge (UK) - was launched today alongside the "Design and the Elastic Mind" exhibition, on view from February 24 to May 12, 2008, at The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York.

Morph features in both the exhibition catalog and on MoMA's official website. Morph is a concept that demonstrates how future mobile devices might be stretchable and flexible, allowing the user to transform their mobile device into radically different shapes. It demonstrates the ultimate functionality that nanotechnology might be capable of delivering: flexible materials, transparent electronics and self-cleaning surfaces.

Dr. Bob Iannucci, Chief Technology Officer, Nokia, commented: "Nokia Research Center is looking at ways to reinvent the form and function of mobile devices; the Morph concept shows what might be possible." Dr. Tapani Ryhanen, Head of the NRC Cambridge UK laboratory, Nokia, commented: "We hope that this combination of art and science will showcase the potential of nanoscience to a wider audience.

Elements of Morph might be available to integrate into handheld devices within 7 years, though initially only at the high-end. However, nanotechnology may one day lead to low cost manufacturing solutions, and offers the possibility of integrating complex functionality at a low price.

Alcatel Mandarin Duck Review by 3G.co.uk

Alcatel Mandarin Duck Review by 3G.co.uk

Fashion is a peculiar thing. One man’s pinnacle of good taste is another’s baffling out-there statement. So the phone produced by the collaboration of French phone maker Alcatel and fashion company Mandarina Duck won’t be to everyone’s taste.It’s available in three colours – lilac, cherry red and the brightest of lime green shades, displaying the cute duck emblem on the back of the phone. Each has a glossy inside surface while the casing has a half glossy, half rubbery-matt finish, and is a darker shade. There are two discreet side flaps covering the USB/power socket on one side and the memory card slot on the other.

This phone is clearly aimed at women, not because fashion isn’t for men, but because it comes with a little rubber ball (colour-coded to the phone, naturally) on a string to attach to the handset. Then there’s a matching handbag clip which means you can connect the ball to the clip safe in the knowledge that the phone will always be easily to hand at the top of the bag.

This is a good idea and works well, as it means no more frantic searching for your phone. There’s a one-line blue screen down the centre of the lid, which tells you the time, battery, and signal strength when you press one of the buttons.

Troublesome buttons

Things only begin to unravel when you start to use the handset. Firstly, the glossy inside has smooth, flat keys, which almost blend into one another, and the direction and OK keys in the centre are particularly hard to separate, so working your way through the menu isn’t always easy.

Full Review with Specification and More Photos Here

Nintendo Games on Your Phone

Fly has announced the MC100 Phone, which is the first phone to support Nintendo games.

The handset supports both Java MIDP2.0 / CLDC1.1. and Nintendo (nes/smc/gb/gbc) platform. Fly MC100 is the first handset offering its users this unique function. Games (nes/smc/gb/gbc) can be freely downloaded from the Internet and set up in your Fly MC100. Special game keys are disposed in the upper part for better convenience. There are in-built e-book and e-mail client functions for intellectual entertainment fans and for those who are used to working outside the office.

Fly MC100 is of medium dimensions — 111.4 × 50.2 × 15 mm and of optimal weight of 106 g for a handset of that class. A powerful 1050mAh Li-Ion battery provides a long musical marathon, many hours gaming and 5 -hour business talks. Fly MC100 is able for 330 hour operating in a stand-by mode.

Fly MC100 up-to-date TFT display of 262K colors with a 240×320 pixel resolution is perfectly suitable for viewing and editing images made with a 2 mega pixel camera with a digital zoom (maximal resolution is 1600×1200 pixels) and a multi-shooting function, as well as for video and clips playback.

Fly MC100 “works” with all popular audio and video formats (MIDI, IMY, WAV, AMR, AAC, MP3 and MPEG4/3GP) and plays records with a help of an in-built MP3 player or FM band. Fly MC100 is synchronized with computer and charged via USB cable, also can be connected with other devices via Bluetooth 1.2 A2DP. Fly MC100 in-built memory is 23 MB, and an additional microSD card for music, video and game collection storage.

The Phone is currently only available in the US , for a price of $270. Any further news of a UK launch will be brought to you, as always, on the 3G Mobile Phone Blog.

First Nokia N96 Commercial

The first Nokia N96 commercial has appeared and can be viewed above.

Sony Ericsson W580i Review by 3G.co.uk

Sony Ericsson W580i Review by 3G.co.uk

Sony Ericsson’s Walkman music phone range is no stranger to soundtracking punters’ exercise regimes. Back in 2006 it launched the W710i, an active phone complete with a built-in pedometer to monitor fitness levels. The W580i is a follow-up of sorts but less sporty and more ‘street’ than its predecessor, rigged with those fitness applications and shake music player controls last seen on the W910i.

The mid-range W580i is only Sony Ericsson’s second Walkman slider. If you’re looking for a close comparison it’s essentially a tweaked S500i dressed up in Walkman togs. Generally it feels quite solid in the hand, but the battery cover is prone to the odd creak while the soft keys are overly spongy. On the upside, the slider action is reassuringly sturdy, and it opens with a snap to reveal what looks to be a cramped keypad. But don’t fret because the arrangement is surprisingly thumb-friendly.

If you’re a fitness fanatic, the built-in pedometer is a welcome feature. Runners can track distance, average speed and time while the monitor is on default to automatically count your walking steps. If you enter your vital stats like weight, height, D.O.B and gender it can even calculate the calories you burn. But don’t get too despondent when you find out a 30 minute jog doesn’t burn of that quarter pounder you had for lunch. Your fitness progress can then be compared using the weekly breakdown of results.

Full Review with Specification and More Photos Here

Samsung Soul will not be Quad Band

When the Samsung Soul was announced , it was that the slider phone would boast quad-band GSM radios.

However, this has now proven to be untrue.

Instead of having a full smattering of world-friendly GSM radios, the Samsung Soul is only a tri-band GSM unit, latching onto the 900, 1800, and 1900 MHz frequencies. Notably missing from the batch is the 850MHz band that so many North Americans seek for service in less than ideal locations. We can use 1900MHz, sure, but 850MHz just works better. The fourth radio in the Soul is WCDMA 2100.

Other features on the flagship Samsung Soul include a 5MP camera, 2.2-inch QVGA display, Magical Touch by DaCP, a stainless steel finish, Web 2.0 tools, Bluetooth 2.0, FM radio, MP3 playback, and a Bang & Olufsen digital power amplifier.

Source

No Camera Version for the E51

Nokia has released a camera-free Nokia E51. Of course it features all the same specification as the E51 less a camera. This is because Nokia knows from passed experience that a great number of professional people are banned from taking any form of a camera into their place of work.

The camera-free Nokia E51 will be available sometime around March / April 2008.

The slim and elegant Nokia E51 adds greater simplicity, faster access and tighter integration to key applications, while maintaining the smartphone capabilities and stylish design that customers have come to expect in a Nokia Eseries device.

An all-round device, Nokia E51 is ideal for business professionals who require reliable, real-time access to business and people, need to manage time effectively and value a single device that is easy to set up, maintain and use.

Nokia E51 users with Nokia mobility solutions can experience mobile telephony, mobile email and messaging, office phone functionality, and cost savings - with the convenience of one phone number, one voice mailbox, one dial plan - in a single device.

Nokia N96 Ready for June Release

Yes we have it on good authority that the Nokia N95 will be on sale in the UK in June 2008.

3G is organising a review of the Nokia N96 and when its posted it can be found here whilst full details of Nokia release can be found here.

Meanwhile brief details follow :

The Nokia N96 mobile phone takes the impressive N95 and makes it even smarter. It has the same clever two-way sliding mechanism as its predecessor, giving you the choice of a conventional keypad or music controls, but there are quite a few changes inside.

The 5 megapixel camera is now linked with the built-in GPS mapping, letting you 'geotag' your pictures with location data. You're able to capture video clips in DVD-like quality at 30 frames per second - and there's compatibility with a wide range of video playback formats including MPEG-4, Windows Media Video and Flash Video. The Nokia N96 even has a stand on the back for handsfree viewing. Music is also well catered for, with a massive 16GB of expandable storage, 3D stereo speakers and a standard 3.5mm headphone socket. With WiFi and 3G HSDPA connectivity rounding off the package, this is a true multimedia computer.

Google's Android Software Platform Makes Debut

The first mobile phones fitted with Google's Android software platform made their debut at the Mobile World Congress.3GSM. Google launched Android last year, hoping to establish its software as the standard operating system for mobile phones and to improve the quality of web-browsing for handset users.

The idea is that Android will lead to radically improved functionality, notably for web browsing, meaning more people will use their mobile phones for Internet surfing and other applications.

Internet use on mobile phones can currently be a frustrating experience, with clunky software and slow download speeds.

Android is being developed by a coalition of 30 handset manufacturers, chip makers and software groups and is based on open-source code, meaning programmers are able to build compatible applications for free.

"The future ability of Android is exciting because it's open-source so it allows developers to come up with the next killer application," said a spokesman for US chip maker Texas Instruments, which demonstrated Android software in a prototype phone.

Android was on display for the first time in only prototype phones. The first handset for consumers from either Taiwan's HTC or US group Motorola is expected in the second half of this year.

Google announced the "Open Handset Alliance" in November last year to develop Android, including China Mobile, HTC, Intel, Motorola, Qualcomm, T-Mobile, Telefonica, LG and eBay.
Gartner's Milanesi stressed that "the road between a prototype and commercial handset is a long one" and said the ultimate test of Android's success would be how easily applications could be used.

The interest in a new software platform from Google also stems from the company's desire to establish its brand in emerging markets. Google surprised analysts when it unveiled Android last November. They had expected the Internet giant to announce the launch of its own Google-branded G-Phone to compete against Apple's popular iPhone.

Limited Edition Diamond Blackberry

Amosu, the luxury phone customiser has announced a Limited Edition Diamond Blackberry Phone.

Specifications and Price can be seen below, but it goes without saying that this phone is meant for the superrich.

Infact, many major celebrities including 50 Cent have been spotted with Amosu customised phones.

Side/Bottom: 18k Solid White Gold
Gold Weight: 19.7g
Diamonds: Approx 900
DiamondsCut: Brilliant
cutColour: FClarity:
VSCarat: Approx 12ct

Only 20 will be made and they will be personalised to the customers requirements!

Different Colours of Gold, Diamonds and the Handset itself are available.

Gold: Available in Yellow, White or Platinum Gold
Colours: Available handset colours are black, white, pink and blue.
Diamond Colours: Available in white, black, pink and brown.

The phone costs £45,000 but in terms of the exclusivity , we are sure they will easily sell out.

Lucio Phone Specification

Specifications have now been released for the Lucio Designer Phone , which was originally announced here on the 3G Mobile Phone Blog.
The Phone is being developed by new UK company ONYX .

MAIN FEATURES

• MP3 player
• Tri-band mobile phone (GSM900 / DCS1800 / PCS 1900)
• FM radio (40 stations can be stored)
• 1.1'' OLED colour display
• microSD memory card slot
• Jog-button for easy scrolling through menus and playlists
• Phonebook with up to 500 entries
• Bluetooth• Stereo-Headset
• USB 2.0
• Stylish design, ultra small DISPLAY
• 1.1'' OLED colour display (96 x 96 px, 65K colours)MEMORY
• Internal: 128 MB flash
• External: supports microSD memory cards up to 1GB

HOUSING

• Black, high gloss finished
• Dimensions: 90 x 35 x 17.8 mm
• Weight (incl. battery): 60 g

JCB Toughphone Review by 3G.co.uk

JCB Toughphone Review by 3G.co.uk

Formerly know as the Sonim XP1, as well as sporting the JCB name, the Toughphone is decked out in its namesake’s bright yellow and black colour scheme. The keys are big enough and spaced out enough to be able to find when wearing gloves. Encased in some rubber body armour, the phone is meticulously sealed bo

Please try the following: 1. Drop the phone from a fourth floor window. 2. Take your phone with you into the shower. 3. Drive over your phone and feel free to reverse over it. These were just a few of the suggestions we were given when we received Sonim’s JCB-branded ‘Toughphone’. So off we set to see if this bruiser really was as tough as it claimed.

th in terms of the front keypad and the back cover where the battery and SIM are kept, to stop any fluid getting inside. Indeed the back of the handset is screwed on (although you can open it with a firm fingernail) to avoid the cover coming off, say if it falls out of a fourth floor window for example.

JCB Toughphone falls out of a window

Due to the hustle and bustle of the streets of London, we found no safe place to launch the Toughphone out of a fourth floor window. We therefore had to settle for a bedroom window on a second floor home. But rest assured, we did throw it with some force onto the concrete below. The result? Apart from a slight scuff on the top of the handset it was as good as new. The handset remained switched on throughout its descent and consequent impact. We actually tried it a further two times and still the Toughphone remained in tact.

Full Review with Score and Many more photos here

Orange First to Market with the New HTC Shift

Orange announced the launch of the HTC Shift. Exclusive to Orange, the Shift packs the punch of a laptop in a smaller, lighter form factor, with full mobile data connectivity. It perfectly blends style with functionality, boasting a seven inch touch screen that smoothly slides and tilts to the perfect viewing angle, as well as a full QWERTY keyboard.

The always-on “mob-top” is the perfect accessory for those that want to both work and play. Users can easily switch between Microsoft Windows Mobile and the fuller Microsoft Windows Vista mode, at the touch of a button. Customers can always be contactable thanks to a long battery life and innovative technology which enables users to preview their text messages, emails, calendar and contacts as well as providing alerts and reminders when new items arrive – even if the Shift is not switched on.

Supporting both 3G/3G+ and Wi-Fi connectivity, a first for any Ultra Mobile PC, the Shift can seamlessly move between networks, ensuring customers can access internet and emails whether at home, in work or out and about.

Customers who are constantly on the move can maximise their time as the Shift comes pre-loaded with Microsoft Office in Vista mode enabling users to download, view and edit their Microsoft Word, Microsoft Excel, and Microsoft PowerPoint documents.

The Shift comes with a massive 30GB hard-drive, so that as well as being able to surf the web, customers can store all their photos, music and videos to help pass the time away from work.

For extra security the Shift has a built-in fingerprint sensor, meaning that your contacts, content and emails are kept safe.

The HTC Shift will be available to buy online at Orange.co.uk, and in selected Orange retail stores throughout the UK from the end of February. The Shift will be priced at £999 with a data tariff.

Sony Ericsson T250i Review by 3G.co.uk

Sony Ericsson T250i Review by 3G.co.uk

It’s fair to say that Sony Ericsson’s presence in the bargain basement prepay market has been marginal. Even after the mega-success of its Walkman music handsets and Cyber-shot camphones, the Japanese-Scandinavian outfit has still found it difficult to break Nokia’s dominance at this level. But in an attempt to crack the monopoly, Sony Ericsson has decided to up the production values, starting with the T250i.

Sony Ericsson wants to bring quality to the lower prepay classes without wrecking the wallet and at the time of going to press, O2 and Carphone Warehouse were shifting the T250i for a mere £30. Handle the T250i and you’ll soon see that 30 quid represents a stellar bargain. While not totally convincing, its classy brushed aluminium finish and solid build still feels out of place on such a rudimentary pay-as-you-go handset.

As a member of the recently resurrected classic Tseries, its design is also smart and refined. While it’s reminiscent of Sony Ericsson’s familiar signature candybar-stylings, the simple clean lines are nevertheless quite elegant.

Naturally, for such a frill-free handset, the T250i is incredibly user-friendly. The raised buttons on the spacious keypad are highly thummable and great for speed texting. The four-way joypad also has grips for extra purchase and sports signposted shortcuts, taking you to the phone’s more popular features. When in home-screen mode you can access the camera, FM radio, contacts and the messaging menu with one click. One minor niggle is the four-way joypad forcing you to use the left soft key for making selections. Those of us weaned on a five-way arrangement may find this disorientating to begin with, but operation will soon become second nature.

Full Review with Scores , Full Specification and More Pictures Here

'Second Life’ on 3G Phones

The Second Lifeexperience is coming to mobile. The 3D virtual world platform, created by Linden Lab will soon be available on 3G handsets via Vollee’s streaming mobile games service. Beta trials for Vollee’s new mobile offering for the Second Life Grid platform (an inter-connected platform which extends beyond the mainland of Second Life itself) will be open to those who pre-register by visiting www.vollee.com/secondlife.

Vollee’s Second Life mobile service will enable access to the virtual world of Second Life for Residents to explore, interact and communicate on-line. The Second Life mobile experience reformats the online world to fit on mobile phone screens while mapping the keys on handsets to commands in-world. Existing Residents can simply log-in and people new to Second Life can also try out the online world for the first time through the mobile service. With a simple download to their 3G mobile handset, anyone can enjoy their online Second Life session while on the move.

Vollee’s proprietary solution is the only one on the market that can stream any high-end PC title to mobile, including popular massively multiplayer online role playing games. The company’s technology takes into account the screen size, the key layout and makes sure all the fun of playing the original game remains. Vollee's interactive video streaming platform optimizes compression to minimize bandwidth requirements and also leverages the 3G mobile networks in such a way that gamers can not only navigate virtual worlds but also play fast paced, high quality video games previously impossible on mobile.

A single software download to a 3G handset provides access to Vollee streamed titles, enabling gamers to find and play mobile games more easily than ever.

Catchphrase : Mobile Game Review

CatchPhrase

In the immortal words, we’ll say what we see: Catchphrase is a slick mobile update of the classic TV quiz, where the aim is to guess the catchphrases on screen.

The game is based closely on the structure of the original TV show, with all the original rounds. Guessing catchphrases involves tapping them in like a text message, which is a bit fiddly, but on the whole works well. It gets the tension of the original across, and results in a worthy successor to Noel’s star turn.

Sagem my511xReview by 3G.co.uk

Sagem my511xReview by 3G.co.uk

Sagem has long been a stalwart in producing attractive phones for an affordable price. While its specs may pale in comparison to more high-end handsets, for an entry-level, the French manufacturer has enjoyed a degree of success. With its polished jet-black finish and slim build, the new Sagem my511X is possibly its slickest looking handset yet, but is its good looks simply painting over the cracks?

Sagem my511X craftsmanship

Opening up the compact box the Sagem my511X came packaged in, our eyes rested on a handsome looking device. Our excitement intensified as we picked up the impressively slim, not to mention light handset. Yet this euphoria began to subside when it took us an age to figure out how to open the back of the phone to plug in the SIM and battery. After admitting defeat in trying to locate a release button we prised it open with our fingernail.

The cover to the charging slot is awkwardly attached to the back of the handset, and is a real nuisance to open. There is little lag after prying it open, meaning you have to try and squeeze the charger into the slot. Once you’ve managed this, the slightest knock will dislodge the charger, cutting off battery supply. It may be a harsh comparison, but it’s hard to fathom some of the larger manufacturers such as Nokia or Samsung crafting phones with such glitches.

Sagem my511X flat keypad

Only six buttons are clearly visible on the handset – a call and end button, two shortcut and menu confirmation keys (though there’s no indicator as to what function these shortcuts do until you press them), a navigation key, and an OK button that doubles up as the media player’s play and pause button – the number keys lie across the flat keypad. Once the phone is active, these keys have a backlight making them far more obvious to the eye, giving the handset an appealing Christmas tree look. Unfortunately this lighting display doesn’t make it more obvious to touch.

As there is no definition between the numeric keys, a degree of concentration is needed to make sure you don’t accidentally hit the wrong key. This can slow the entire use of the phone down to a mere trot. We found this the case when composing text messages, often having to backtrack to correct a word. With each press of a numeric key the keypad caves in slightly acknowledging the press.

Full Review with Many more Photos and Specification Here

New Sony Ericsson Intuitive User Interface

Ericsson launched the Ericsson Multimedia Communication Suite (MCS) - bringing to consumers popular services they already enjoy on the Internet in a new and enhanced mobile way. The intuitive user interface will be integrated into selected new Sony Ericsson devices such as the W760.

With the Ericsson MCS, mobile operators will be able to offer their customers a suite of attractive services. Consumers will be able to access new and existing services from the address book - with an interface including rich presence functionality such as avatars, photos and personal free text. The solution also keeps track of friends and their applications so consumers will always see who is available for different applications. The user has full control over what type of information is available.

The intuitive user interface integrates new MCS applications such as chat and file transfer smoothly with existing voice, video call, SMS and MMS services. Having all contacts and services available through one presence-enabled address book creates a feeling of being closer to friends and family. This stimulates new types of spontaneous communication using both existing and new services. Ericsson has learned from its consumer research that today's communication is about so much more than just making announcements­­: it has evolved into the sharing of everyday experiences. Presence alone with personal messages and avatars will be of great interest to many consumers supporting everyday sharing of experiences.

Ericsson MCS will initially be available for selected Sony Ericsson feature phones. In Barcelona the MCS solution will be demonstrated live on popular Sony Ericsson phones.

Disney Announces New Mobile Games

Walt Disney Internet Group today announces five brand new titles for its mobile phone range of easily playable, highly enjoyable games that can be played by all ages.

First up is Lego Bionicle Defenders, (based on the flash game "Tower Defenders"), featuring the popular Lego line of articulated toys in the mobile world. This fast-moving game takes place in a hostile undersea environment, where the player must battle through 16 levels and clear out all the Barrakis’ hostile sea creatures in their search for the Mask of Life. Lego Bionicle Defenders will be available from March 4.

Also in March, Disney Channel TV star Hannah Montana will be available on mobile, with a range of phone personalisation features, including wallpaper, screensavers, realtones, ringtones, and phone themes.

The more traditional Disney characters also feature in the spring line-up of mobile games, with the ever-popular Donald Duck returning in Disney's PK - Phantom Duck. Disney's very own superhero is available on your mobile screen now, in a platform game, with puzzle challenges running through it to test the player’s brains.

Donald Duck also stars in Disney Bonus Selection, which includes two games for the price of one. Donald Duck's Quest Deluxe is a sequel to the wildly popular Donald Duck’s Quest game, delivering more than 60 levels of puzzles and five hours of brain-tickling fun! In the second game, Duckburg, you play as rookie cop Donald Duck and help him keep traffic moving smoothly through the chaotic streets!

Then, later in the year, WDIG is proud to be releasing the second game in its Narnia series, based on the classic books by C S Lewis, Narnia Prince Caspian. In addition to the game itself, WDIG will be releasing Prince Caspian branded wallpapers, ringtones, realtones, theme, and screensavers. Both the game and the film Narnia Prince Caspian are due to be released in August.

Vodafone Confirm Release of 2 New Branded Handsets

Vodafone will launch two new own branded mobile phones to grow its range of own branded and award winning mobile phones launched over the last year.

V228

The Vodafone 227 and Vodafone 228 will launch this month, February, and will be available across both Europe and emerging markets. Both mobile phones will meet the customer demand for low cost, simple to use yet stylish handsets. The launch of these mobile phones follows the successful introduction of seven own branded handsets by Vodafone throughout 2007, which today make up on average one in six of the mobile devices shipped by Vodafone annually.

V227

Both the Vodafone 227 and Vodafone 228 offer more choice of style and price to customers. The Vodafone 227 is a clamshell phone and the Vodafone 228 is a slider mobile. In addition to core text and voice services, both come with a colour display, vibrating alert and headset.

HTC P3470 Touchscreen Phone With GPS

HTC announced the European launch of the HTC P3470, the latest member of the HTC product portfolio. Combining a lightweight design, large screen, sat-nav software and strong battery life, the P3470 sets a new standard in affordable smartphone, GPS-based devices.

At just 108mm tall, the HTC P3470 offers unbeatable value as one of the most compact devices in HTC's portfolio, featuring a broad range of functionality that today’s consumers desire. The HTC P3470™ enables an easy to use and simple interface for accessing web pages, documents, messages, contact lists and more.

Smart, simple and easy to use, TomTom Navigator 6 is the best sat-nav solution for your PDA or mobile phone. The intuitive interface, crystal clear instructions and easy call handling make it the ideal navigation partner for the P3470. The touch interface and large 2.8in screen ensure the AGPS-enabled sat-nav is easy to use, and the HTC P3470 is truly mobile thanks to the long battery life. The HTC P3470 also includes a 1GB Micro SD card for mapping and other data storage.

The HTC P3470™ will be available to customers across Europe later this month on Orange. The price of the handset will be 449 euros.

LG KF510 Slider Announced

LG Electronics unveiled its LG-KF510 at the 2008 Mobile World Congress. LG-KF510 is a stylish, fashionable phone catering to users’ demand for slimmer phones with unique design accents.

At just 10.9mm thick, the LG-KF510 is an extremely slim slider phone. It combines a sleek style with strength created by its metal frame and tempered glass. At the centre of its design are metal gradation paint schemes available in Stardust Dark Gray or Sunset Red.

This attractive looking phone is equally attractive to use. Its tactile and visually interactive user
interface includes captivating animation developed based on the LG’s advanced touch technology. Users will especially appreciate the quality of the LG-KF510’s multi-function camera and MP3 player.

The LG-KF510 will be available worldwide with an initial launch date in March 2008 for Latin America, to be followed by a European launch in April 2008.

Toshiba Portege Announced

Toshiba unveiled the Portégé G910, an advanced smart mobile device for the professional user. Built around Windows Mobile 6 Professional, the G910 offers the full suite of Microsoft® Office solutions, including Powerpoint, Word, Excel and Outlook push email. Moreover, the G910 features a biometric fingerprint security solution for instant, secure access to the phone, has built in GPS for real-time navigation and has a high resolution 3” Wide-VGA touch screen that is perfect for displaying web pages. It will be available across Europe in the first quarter of 2008.

The Portégé G910 acts like a ‘mobile hub’ helping users stay connected whether for business or pleasure. From managing emails, accessing the corporate Intranet or working on Microsoft Office files to catching-up with friends, listening to music or even playing films on the Windows Media Player. The G910 is the perfect companion to help achieve that ideal work life balance.

The G910’s sleek, sophisticated clamshell design and full QWERTY keyboard gives it the look and feel of a mini laptop. Furthermore, the Portegé G910 provides the ultimate in security with a biometric fingerprint reader allowing only the user to unlock and access all the content on their device – ideal for ensuring this doesn’t end up in the wrong hands.

The built-in GPS function has added benefits to the user by mapping out location and directions from A to B in seconds, perfect for the busy business traveller trying to find their way in a city or new town/country. By supporting Qualcomm’s gpsOneXTRA Assistance™ technology, the G910 provides a faster ‘first fix’ with greater GPS sensitivity indoors and in challenging dense urban environments.

The G910’s unique 3” wide-VGA touch screen display also ensures the user sees more information with less scrolling and provides them with a resolution that is five times better than a standard QVGA display. Working on Microsoft Office documents can become a reality at last, plus the Opera browser on board help bring the perfect web 2.0 experience.

The G910 also provides all of the key functions you’d expect including a 2 mega-pixel camera perfect for ‘capturing the moment’ and a second camera for video telephony, high connectivity from WiFi to HSDPA as well as support for the micro SD card.

JuiceCaster Mobile Social Network Lauched

Juice Wireless announced that JuiceCaster, the complete mobile social-networking solution, is now available on mobile devices across Europe. The video-based service allows anyone with a camera-enabled mobile phone to create and consume rich-media content from their wireless devices and the Web, and automatically share it with their friends and family.

JuiceCaster is a popular mobile solution that allows any individual with a camera-enabled mobile device to capture and distribute content in real-time to friends and family across multiple platforms, including cell phones, blogs and many popular online social-networking sites, including Facebook, MySpace, Orkut and Hi5.

JuiceCaster puts the power of broadcasting in the hands of consumers and professionals on-the-go, enabling them to become news anchors and distributors of original, creative and relevant content, as well as keep in touch with their loved ones. Whether skiing in the Alps or sailing down the coast of France, individuals can capture their fun, memorable moments and share them with friends worldwide. JuiceCaster, currently offered in English, will soon be available in Dutch, French, German, Italian and Spanish.

For more information on JuiceCaster or to sign up for a free membership, visit http://www.juicecaster.com/.

Project Gotham Racing Mobile Game Review

Project Gotham Racing

For those of you still playing on that antique Atari of yours, Project Gotham Racing is one of the best console racing games money can buy, blending a host of glamorous cars with amazing-looking 3D scenery from real-world cities. It's one of the main reasons to buy an Xbox 360 console.

So how can you fit such a complex game onto mobile? Well, Glu Mobile has managed it with aplomb. PGR Mobile is a pitch-perfect conversion that keeps the original's tight controls while packing graphics that - while obviously nowhere near the console version - still set the bar for mobile racers.

You get to race in London, Paris and San Francisco, each with identifiable scenery and tracks. The gameplay is a mixture of street races, time trials, head-to-head battles and even road-cone avoidance. You compete in the races, and if you do well, you earn medals and money to buy faster and more powerful cars.

Key to the game - just like the console version - is kudos. You earn kudos from flashy moves, like skidding round corners, skillful overtaking and even leaving the ground (easiest on the sharp hills of San Francisco).

It looks ace, with proper 3D visuals if your handset is good enough. Equally important is the fact that it's fast, meaning that racing thrills haven't been sacrificed for graphical flair. There is a bit of pop-up (buildings appearing seemingly from nowhere), but this is acceptable given how the game plays.

Most importantly, the cars handle like you'd expect from playing the Xbox 360 version - which, in a game focused around skidding, is vital. And the controls have been well worked for mobile, so you don't get your thumbs in a tangle even when snorting through a tight corner with two other cars on your tail.

Love driving games? Project Gotham Racing is the one to own. Especially if you're sceptical about whether mobile phones can handle the genre. And best of all, the game is connected, so you can compare your kudos score with other players around the world. Simply marvellous.

Nokia 6210 Navigator

Nokia introduced the new Nokia 6210 Navigator, the company's first GPS-enabled mobile device with an integrated compass for pedestrian guidance. The Nokia 6210 Navigator comes with Nokia Maps 2.0, also announced today, and includes full voice and visual turn by turn guidance at no extra cost. The Nokia 6210 Navigator is estimated to start shipping in the third quarter of 2008 in select markets with an estimated retail price of EUR 300, before taxes and subsidies.

Combined with an 'accelerometer' which measures changes in direction and orientation, the built-in compass makes it easy to follow the map when strolling about on foot. When turning the device, the map automatically maintains its orientation. The integrated Nokia Maps 2.0 application will plot the quickest route to the desired destination and illustrate it on the map. Thanks to high-speed 3.5G connectivity, detailed information about each point of interest, like the phone number or web address is a click away.
Car navigation is also simple with the pre-installed one-touch navigation, full voice guidance and self-mount car kit of the Nokia 6210 Navigator. If the user makes a wrong turn, the device will automatically calculate a new route.

The Nokia 6210 Navigator supports assisted GPS (A-GPS), which enables the GPS receiver to acquire the satellites in just seconds. The device is ready for use out of the box, even without a SIM-card. Local maps are pre-loaded on the 1GB memory card of the Nokia 6210 Navigator and map updates are included in the sales price. For an additional fee, users can purchase multimedia city guides from premium content providers via Nokia Maps application and download additional map areas for free via Nokia Map Loader at maps.nokia.com.

Browsing the Internet and using instant messaging, email and widgets is fast with the high speed 3.5G HSDPA technology on the Nokia 6210 Navigator. The device also features a 3.2 megapixel camera, MP3 player and stereo FM radio. The Nokia 6210 Navigator is based on S60 software, allowing users to download and use thousands of new applications in addition to the ones already found on the device.

Nokia 6220 Classic Released

At the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Nokia introduced the Nokia 6220 classic, a full-featured device that combines a 5 megapixel camera with A-GPS functionality to give new meaning to the phrase "to share". High quality images and videos can be snapped, tagged, edited and shared online, phone-to-phone or even viewed on a television.

The highlight of the Nokia 6220 classic is its 5 megapixel camera with Xenon flash and Carl Zeiss optics - on par with many single purpose digital cameras on the market today. With its high-speed HSDPA connection updating blogs or uploading photos and videos to favorite sharing sites like Share on Ovi or Flickr can be done right from the Nokia 6220 classic. A-GPS functionality allows photos to be 'geotagged' - making them easier to search and share. Images can also be viewed on a television screen with the integrated TV-out feature, sent from phone to phone via wireless Bluetooth connection, or viewed in full color on the phone's large 2.2 inch display.

The Nokia 6220 classic comes loaded with the new Nokia Maps 2.0 application which helps consumers find the best routes or explore any city for new restaurants, hotels, tourist attractions and other points of interest. The pre-loaded WidSets service brings web content directly to the device via mini-applications called widgets, providing quick and easy access to news updates, games and web communities. As a full-featured converged device, the Nokia 6220 classic also includes internet browser, email, music player, FM radio with RDS and up to 8 GB of memory.

In addition to its imaging capabilities, the Nokia 6220 classic enables Adaptive Multi Rate - Wideband speech coding technology, giving a more natural sound to human voice in phone calls. It helps when having a conversation in a noisy environment such as in traffic or public place.

The Nokia 6220 classic is expected to start shipping in the 3rd quarter of 2008 in selected markets with an estimated retail price of 325 euros, before taxes and subsidies.

3G HSDPA Cyber-shot Handsets

Sony Ericsson announced two high-performance additions to its popular Cyber-shot phone range with the launch of the C702 Cyber-shot and C902 Cyber-shot.

The two phones, packed with the latest camera technology, make it effortless to take perfect pictures of those spontaneous moments – day or night, at a bar or the beach – and instantly share them with friends and family.

Sony Ericsson C702 Cyber-shotTM – Take pictures everywhere

• Splash and dust resistant* – perfect for your active lifestyle
• Single-handed camera use – for spur-of-the-moment photos
• Built-in GPS with location-based imaging – sort and view your photos according to where you took them

Sony Ericsson C902 Cyber-shot TM – The image and style statement

• Slim Cyber-shot™ phone with unique slide-out lens cover. Camera-ready in an instant


• Stand out design – instantly recognisable


• 5.0 megapixel camera with Face Detection and Auto Focus. Always capture the best shot possible


• Illuminated camera touch keys. Intuitive guidance around the camera settings

Both Phones Will be Available in selected markets from Q2 2008.

Full Story with Specification and More Photos Here

Sony Ericsson W980 Walkman Phone Announced

Sony Ericsson revealed the W980, a Walkman phone that promises to get the most out of your music. Its unique audio enhancing technology, together with the Walkman on Top design, sees the W980 cement Sony Ericsson’s position as a true market leader in the world of music on your mobile.

“The W980 Walkman phone really sets a new standard for music on your phone,” said Ben Padley, Head of Music Marketing, at Sony Ericsson. “We wanted to design a leading music player that we could combine with a feature-packed phone, all the while pioneering an audio experience that always left you wanting more. The W980 will surpass all expectations.”

W980 Walkman phone Created with music in mind

• Clear audio experienceSuperior sound quality lets you enjoy your music as it was meant to be heard

• Walkman on Top Intuitive music access and control

• Storage solutions8GB internal memory lets you store up to 8,000 songs*

The W980 will be available in selected markets from Q3 2008.

Full Story with Specification and More Photos Here

Sony Ericsson XPERIA X1 : The Dawn of a New Era ?

Today marked the launch of XPERIA and a new era in mobile communications with the announcement of the XPERIA X1, a stand-out, arc slider phone from Sony Ericsson designed to address the growing need for a premium, converged mobile experience. The XPERIATM X1 combines a 3-inch clear wi