Nokia N900 preview: First look

Usually when Nokia makes an Nseries announcement the geek world trembles with excitement, expecting to see the next master of the multimedia realm. Nokia N900 didn't make any exception to this rule though it was pitched for its web browsing prowess more than anything else (at least multimedia-wise).

Or at least so it seemed in the beginning, before anyone actually knew how far Nokia has gone with the user experience on the Maemo 5 platform. Soon after it was first demoed, the N900 was quickly deemed a serious peril to most smartphones out there. It even went as far as threatening Nokia's own Symbian platform.

The Nokia N900 has been so universally positive up so far that it easily turned up high on the wishlist of the tech-inclined. Expectations quickly rose quite high matching its top place in the company portfolio lineup.

Now we've got one and while we're working on a full-featured review as we usually do, we decided to post this quick preview covering Nokia N900 key features. And speaking of those, here's a brief recap of what's under its hood.

The chubby Nokia N900 certainly isn't a handset to answer mainstream tastes but then again all those features rarely come in much smaller packages. The geeks know that and are willing to live with it if the performance is worth it. So now that we have a final version of the handsets on our hands we can check that out.

We are giving you a short preview now, to keep you warm until we are done with the full-fledged review. We will try to cover all aspects of the devices performance there but feel free to drop us a line in the comments if there's anything specific you want to know about it. We aren't making any promises, but will do our best to provide the answers to all questions.

First Dell Mini 3i smartphone to be sold by China Mobile, it's official

It's now official that China Mobile will start offering the Dell Mini 3i soon and will be the first to do that. As you know Dell will step on the smartphone market, after a several years gap since they've abandoned the PocketPC market.

As you probably know, Dell recently went ahead and made their Mini 3 official after several years ago they abandoned their PocketPC lineup.
First Dell Mini 3i smartphone to be sold by China Mobile, it's official

The Chinese Dell Mini 3i will sport a 3.5-inch capacitive touchscreen with 640x360 pixel resolution, 3 megapixel camera, quad-band GSM/EDGE support, GPS, Bluetooth, miniUSB port and microSD card slot. It's nothing impressive, we know.

The Mini 3i will run on the OPhone OS, which in reality is an Android OS customized with a China Mobile specific features such as their own application store.

Unfortunately, the Mini 3i will not have Wi-Fi and 3G support.

There is no official info on availability (both China and worldwide versions) or pricing, but the launch is supposed to take place before the end of the year.

Thought it's time for something Else - meet the First ELSE to come

Today Emblaze Mobile announced their new smartphone running on the relatively unknown Access Linux Platform (ALP). Developed from scratch in close cooperation with OS developers, the First ELSE have taken them two years to develop but the end result has turned out quite attractive.

Powered by the TI OMAP 3430 platform the First Else will share the same CPU and graphics accelerator with devices such as the iPhone 3GS, Nokia N900 and Samsung i8910 Omnia HD. The handset packs an impressive 3.5" capacitive LCD touchscreen display with a resolution of 854 x 480 pixels.

The 5-megapixel camera of the First Else is able to capture 480p (which could either mean VGA or WVGA) video at 30fps. Network connectivity is perfectly covered, with both HSDPA and EDGE onboard.

The First ELSE has the Access Linux Platform (ALP) 3 in its core, which is LiMo compliant and has support for classic Palm OS and Java apps. But on top of ALP, ELSE Mobile have put a new UI called ELSE Intuition.

The new UI is task-oriented and is supposed to deliver an unmatched user experience. Yet it seems that the whole press event was dedicated to it being able to outdo the iPhone and Android devices. However looking at those first screenshots we are almost willing to believe that the First Else will, in fact, try to push the envelope, rather than be content with beating the old dogs at their own game.

Else are also working on a self-branded media store to facilitate the distribution of multimedia content for the platform. Of course there will also be an App store (you can't do without one these days) and the SDK will be made available at launch in Q2 of 2010. There's no word however on how much it would cost.

A little backgrounder is definitely due when so many new names are involved. Access is the company developing the Access Linux Platform (ALP) for several years now.

ELSE Mobile is an independent company (previously known as Emblaze Mobile) that has been involved into developing a new smartphone based on the ALP. So far, they've had two concurrent projects - Edelweiss and Monolith (the second one in cooperation with Sharp). Edelweis has even been close to launch in Russia last year and it was detailed in various news sources.

Anyways, since then, both projects have been remapped to produce smartphones some time in 2009 and since their results have not been actively advertised, we guess they've either been dumped or one of them has become the First ELSE.

Intex V.SHOW: India’s First Projector Mobile Phone in India

Intex Technologies, one of India’s fastest growing mobile phones, IT hardware and electronics companies, today announced the launch of INTEX ‘V.SHOW’ – a path- breaking mobile handset with an inbuilt projector to combine projection with mobility. This is India’s first projector phone to be launched by a domestic mobile handset company.

The bohemian phone was unveiled at a glitzy event graced by Bollywood actor Prachi Desai. The launch signifies Intex’s aspiration to move up the value chain with technologically-enriched products having loads of consumer utility.

The sponsoring thought -‘Invent Your Screen’ – bares all; INTEX V.SHOW is all set to change the way people perceive mobile entertainment. It actually brings entertainment at palm’s length and enables the user to project movies, pictures, music videos (saved in the phone and from Internet) and other Internet content up to 61 inches of screen/wall with a high intensity projection of 10 lumens and QWVGA resolution. Projection can be enjoyed up to a distance of 12 ft (between the screen/wall and the phone).

Intex’s Centre for Design and Development has ensured that the product matches to the Indian operating conditions and entertainment prerequisites such as- a long life battery so that one can watch a film for as long as three hours and a film quality of 25 Frames Per Second (FPS) – which is as good as the FPS used in movies. Other features include insertion of ‘Bolt’ in the software – an ultra fast mobile Internet browser and a Tripod stand as one of the accessories in the box (for an easy, hands-free visual experience). The phone is a touch-screen Dual SIM (GSM + GSM) variant and has another coveted feature - Dual Screen mode (phone screen mode and projector screen mode are simultaneously active). It comes with Dual Camera and a Dual Card memory slot of 8 GB each to expand the internal memory of 64 MB.

Taking the visual experience to a new high are the clarity adjustor (present just below the projector lens) to modify the distance and quality of images as per the user’s comfort and freedom to capture stills from the movies (to be used as wallpapers). One can also convert the screen output from portrait to landscape and vice versa. It is FM radio (wireless and wired) enabled, with GPRS connectivity and has an impressive 3.2 inches super color, dust resistant touch screen.

Speaking at the event, Ramesh A. Vaswani, Executive Vice Chairman, Intex Technologies, said, “INTEX V.SHOW is in sync with the company’s aim of providing useful innovation and quality products to its consumers in keeping with its philosophy of launching Life Version 2.0 products. It symbolizes our technological advancement and continued focus on R&D. I am confident that INTEX V.SHOW change the way people watch movies, videos, picture galleries and even read e-Books on their mobile phones. If positioned judiciously, it could emerge as a powerful infotainment tool too. We are in touch with leading chip development companies of the world for future enhancements in this model”

Intex plans to target the phone amongst youth and all discerning consumers (sans age barrier) in urban, semi-urban and rural areas who crave for quality entertainment anytime and anywhere. Elaborating on the technicalities, Debu K Dasgupta, Head-Centre for Design & Development, Intex Technologies added, “The phone is a marvel of technology in the personal entertainment domain. It can receive multimedia content remotely through GPRS connectivity which makes it a valuable tool for streaming of content anywhere- commuting in public transport, spending leisure time outdoors/ cafes, remote locations, etc. Along with provision of front and back cameras and customized Java applications, the phone’s sound output through built-in speaker can be further be enhanced through external amplifiers/ headphone speakers. All these come neatly packed in a smart design to fit into your pocket.”

Sharing the company’s strategy, Vinayak Kumar Lal, General Manager – Marketing, Intex Technologies shared, “With the launch of the V.SHOW, this is one more attempt to consciously demonstrate that our mobiles can do more than just voice and message. The idea behind coming out with a projector phone is to present a ‘Mobile Theatre’ to the users. Over the next six months or so we will be coming up with various innovative and niche offerings to keep the brand name top-of-mind in the consumers’ minds.”

Looking at it from the consumer’s perspective, Shailendra Jha, DGM-Telecom, Intex Technologies commented, “I believe we have a winner in this product which will give our customers a totally new experience of convergence of Information, Communication, Technology and Entertainment at a highly affordable price of INR 16,000 (MRP)”.

Courtesy: Intex Technologies India

Android OS : Sony Ericsson Xperia X12 (Anzu) “Review - First in Internet “

Sony Ericsson Xperia Anzu rumor is going to correct in few months. The Anzu Xperia exists, and will be launched as Xperia X12 – Sony Ericsson’s next ultimate new model. The Xperia 12 is expected to launch by Feb 2011. This is a deviation from initial reports that suggested that Anzu will launch with Gingerbread (Android 2.3) onboard. Now, it appears that Gingerbread will be made available as a separate update at some point during the summer of 2011.

Let we discuss the Xperia Mobile Review - managed to get their hands on an early development build, which was running vanilla Android 2.1. The reviewer found the device to be quite snappy. However, the real question is, how well will the X12 perform once the custom shell (UXP) has been plastered on top of the vanilla Android.

The Android OS Xperia X12 will also feature an camera of 8.1 megapixel with 720p HD recording at 30fps.

Possibly the biggest let downs in the Xperia 12 are its display and processor. It will have a 4.2” FWVGA (854×480) capacitive display with full multi-touch support. However, Sony Ericsson has decided to continue using traditional LCD displays instead of the AMOLED or SLCD displays used by HTC.

As disclosed earlier, the Xperia X12 will be powered by MSM7230. The processor (45nm) in X12 will most likely be clocked at 800 MHz, and in terms of performance will be quite similar to the current generation snapdragons (65nm). However, the MSM7230 uses Adreno 205 as its GPU unit, which is a significant step up from the previous Adreno 200.

Many people are waiting for this new release.

Please post your comments

Intex V.SHOW: India's First Projector Mobile Phone by Intex

Intex Technologies has come up with the Intex V.SHOW mobile phone, which features an in-built projector to combine projection with mobility. The phone allows users to project movies, pictures, music videos (saved in the phone and from Internet) and other Internet content up to 154.9 cms (61 inches) of screen/wall with a high intensity projection of 10 lumens and QWVGA resolution. Projection can be enjoyed up to a distance of 12 ft (between the screen/wall and the phone).

Its long-life battery ensures that you can watch a film for as long as three hours and a film quality of 25 frames per second (FPS) – which is as good as the FPS used in movies. Other features include insertion of ‘Bolt’ in the software – a fast mobile Internet browser and a Tripod stand as one of the accessories in the box (for an easy, hands-free visual experience). The phone is a touch-screen dual SIM (GSM + GSM) variant and also has another feature - dual screen mode (phone screen mode and projector screen mode are simultaneously active). It comes with dual camera and a dual card memory slot of 8 GB each to expand the internal memory of 64 MB.

Taking the visual experience to a new high are the clarity adjustor (present just below the projector lens) to modify the distance and quality of images as per the user’s comfort and freedom to capture stills from the movies (to be used as wallpapers). One can also convert the screen output from portrait to landscape and vice versa. It is FM radio (wireless and wired) enabled, with GPRS connectivity and has a 8.1 cms (3.2 inches) dust resistant touch screen.

Speaking at the event, Ramesh A. Vaswani, executive vice chairman, Intex Technologies, said, “I am confident that Intex V.SHOW will change the way people watch movies, videos, picture galleries and even read e-books on their mobile phones. If positioned judiciously, it could emerge as a powerful infotainment tool too. We are in touch with leading chip development companies of the world for future enhancements in this model.”

Elaborating on the technicalities, Debu K Dasgupta, head-centre for design and development, Intex Technologies, added, “It can receive multimedia content remotely through GPRS connectivity which makes it a valuable tool for streaming of content anywhere- commuting in public transport, spending leisure time outdoors/ cafés, remote locations, etc. Along with provision of front and back cameras and customised Java applications, the phone’s sound output through built-in speaker can be further be enhanced through external amplifiers/ headphone speakers.”

Intex V.SHOW price at Rs 16,000 (MRP).

Source: Intex Technologies

Micromax Andro A60 Price India; First Android Mobile Phone from Micromax Mobiles

Micromax has also joined the Android bandwagon with its soon-to-be launched Android 2.1 - powered Micromax Andro A60 smartphone. The new Micromax Andro A60 is the first Android mobile phone from Micromax.

The new Micromax Andro A60 has a 2.8-inch resistive full touch screen and a 3.2 megapixel camera at rear. It is a full 2.8-inch touchscreen display mobile phone running the older version , Android v2.1 , of the Android OS . Andro A60 runs on Android 2.1 Eclair and powered with 600MHz microprocessor. The other features include WiFi, GPS, Bluetooth and FM radio. This phone offers internal memory of 150 MB but supports micro SD card upto 32 GB. The new Micromax Andro A60 supports high speed 3G connectivity and Wireless LAN WiFi support .The Android OS version is not upgradeable to the latest Android v2.2 .

Micromax Andro A60 Android Phone Price in India India: Around Rs. 8000 to Rs 9000

Micromax Andro A60 Features and Specifications :

- Form Full Touch 2.8 ” Resistive Screen

- Band GSM (900/1800MHz) WCDMA900/2100MHz

- Version 2.1 Éclair

- HSUPA 7.2Mbps

- HSDPA 5.76Mbps

- Weight 105gms

- Dimensions 106.8mm x 59.2mm x 14.0mm

- Display 62K TFT, (320*240 pixels) 7.1cms Touch Screen

- Camera 3.2MP, Auto-Focus Camera

- Video Streaming Yes

- Video Player Yes

- Video Recorder Yes

- Audio Player Yes

- GPS Yes

- WiFi Yes

- Internal Memory 150MB

- Expandable Memory Up-to 32GB

- Messaging SMS/MMS

- GPRS/WAP/MMS Yes

- Battery Type 1280 mAh Li-ion Battery

- Talk Time Up-to 4 hours*

- Standby Time Up-to 10 days*

More: Latest Micromax Mobiles in India