Author: pdasnews

“If you want something done right, you’d better do it yourself. That’s SanDisk’s thinking anyways, with their new RapidGX Memory Stick PRO Duo cards they’re showing at E3. The cards do the usual Memory Stick PRO Duo thing, namely providing music, movies and other content for PSP owners, but they include a bit of SanDisk special sauce performance enhancements to speed file transfers up to 15MB per second, double the normal rates for PRO Duo cards. Seems like they just got tired of Sony’s limitations in the Memory Stick tech, and figured a way to improve it themselves. The 1GB card is all that’s available right now, and it retails for $85. The price — for a limited time only — includes for free SanDisk’s new MicroMate high-speed card reader to help the RapidGX hit its maximum speeds, and also includes PSP loader software to maximize space and convert files.” via engadget.com

‘Worldwide PDA shipments totaled 3.65 million units in the first quarter of 2006, a 6.6 percent increase from the first quarter of last year, according to Gartner, Inc. Gartner’s numbers are primarily reflect handhelds and PDA’s (and does not include Treo shipments), however the company does include some RIM smartphone devices that they classify as PDA’s with cellular radios. “The average selling price of PDAs fell 2.7 percent compared with one year ago to $395, mostly because of the lack of many new models entering the market in the quarter and commanding premium prices,” said Todd Kort, principal analyst in Gartner’s Computing Platforms Worldwide group. Many wireless carriers are bypassing Enhanced Data for Global Evolution (EDGE) in favor of Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS), which along with a shortage of UMTS chips, is resulting in a slowdown in new cellular PDA launches.” ‘ Read this article at palminfocenter.com

“Taking centre stage in the matte grey aluminum finish of the sturdy E61 is a superb, 2.8-inch landscape display with a resolution of 320 x 240 pixels and a user interface which – unlike many previous Nokia devices – makes good use of the real estate available to it. User adjustable brightness is present, as is an ambient light sensor which works as advertised, while – just to ensure hell really does freeze over – Nokia has also included an e-mail alert LED which sits just above the screen; it’s about time. Sub-pixel font smoothing technology included in the Windows Mobile platform is not present, but the screen nevertheless scores full marks on readability.” Check out this review here:

“The PG-2800 model’s keypad recognizes and processes the individual user’s writing of text messages. Consumers can either push individual keys or write letters with their fingers on the keypad when looking up words in the electronic dictionary or sending text messages.The unique ‘finger writing recognition’ function allows users to avail of faster, more convenient communication and is especially useful for inputting text in Russian characters, as well as in the Chinese language. Sung-Kyu Lee, President & CEO of Pantech & Curitel Communications, Inc., said: “We expect the unique PG-2800 handset to reinforce our credentials as a provider of attractive, stylish yet ultra-modern handsets for consumers, both in Russia and around the world.”The company plans to introduce 15 new models during 2006 in Russia to further boost its market share.PG-2800 features include:
Intenna type clamshell
Finger writing recognition function
Size: 90x45x18.5mm
Weight: 87.9g
network: 900/1800/1900 MHz
Display: Main 2.0″ 260K color TFT LCD
Sub 1.17″ 65K color TFT LCD
1.3 mega pixel camera with white balance functionality
MP3 player
Electronic dictionary
SMS/EMS/MMS/E-mail
External memory card slot” via slashphone.com

“Samsung has shipped a new Linux-based smartphone in China. The SCH-i819 targets Chinese business travelers, and is the first Linux phone to support dual-band cellular operation with both CDMA 1x (800MHz) and dual-band GSM (900/1800MHz) networks, according to Mizi Research, which supplied the phone’s Linux stack.The SCH-i819 appears to share the same “slider” hardware platform as the SGH-i858, a tri-band GSM phone that has already been submitted to the FCC to be approved for potential US distribution.The phone functions of the SCH-i819 run on a Qualcomm MSM6300 communications processor, said to comply with CDMA2000 1X Revision A, GSM release 99 phase 2, GPRS class B multislot class 10, and GPS (global positioning system). The MSM6300 is based on an ARM926EJ-S core with memory management unit (MMU), and integrates dual QDSP4000 DSPs, along with a Jazelle Java accelerator. It runs Java and Brew, Qualcomm’s proprietary mobile applications environment. The applications processing side of the SCH-i819 runs Linux on an Intel PXA270 applications processor clocked at 416MHz. The SCH-i819 has a total of 64MB of SDRAM, and 128MB of Flash, although how these amounts are divided between the two processing subsystems is not clear. User file storage is expandable through a micro-SD TransFlash card slot. The SCH-i819 has a 2.4-inch, QVGA (240 x 320) color TFT touchscreen display with 65K colors, and a 2 megapixel CCD (charge-coupled device) digital camera. Networking options include Bluetooth, IrDA, and USB.The SCH-i819 has an 1100 mAh battery, and measures 4.2 x 2 x 0.9 inches (107 x 52 x 22mm).” via linuxdevices.com

“Here’s a much anticipated device by Toshiba, the S30, the first player of that brand that runs on Windows Portable Media Center. This is not a detailed review because we litteraly just had the device in our hands, but we do want to show you some pictures and a small HD video.First of all, let’s say that Windows Media for an MP3 player like this S30 is a good thing. the menus are very clear, switching from pictures, videos, TV shows to MP3’s is a really simple task, and Apple should really get one of these to see how Microsoft managed to make this less of an ordeal as on the iPOD. The cross-shaped pad is a real joy to use, especially when compared to the horrible iPOD or CowOn 6 wheel (I really hate those controls, but that’s just my opinion). You can connect this MP3 player to your PC in the same way as an iRIVER or CowOn, and it mounts as a HDD to give you immediate access to all of its contents (videos, pictures, MP3 files, …).So after playing with the S30 for 5 minutes, I was really impressed both on a design level as on an OS level. Here’s some advice for those of you that are doubting: get this one and dump that iPOD… granted, the Apple looks great too, but it’s just too restricted… which is kind of strange to say: an Apple product is more restrictive than a Microsoft product! The S30 and S60 are available on GeekStuff4U.com” Check this great video at akihabaranews.com

“Boasting Windows Mobile 5.0, a 1.3 Megapixel camera, high-resolution display and microSD expansion, Qtek’s clamshell 8500 is the slimmest business phone yet – and no heavyweight either at 99 g.Standing in stark contrast to Windows Mobile business phones of yore, the new Qtek 8500 clamshell measures a mere 16 mm thick despite offering a range of advanced features which include quad-band GSM with EDGE, a 2.2-inch internal high-resolution display and a 1.2-inch external counterpart. Also known as the HTC STRTrk, the handset incorporates Bluetooth and a 1.3 Megapixel into its feature set, along with microSD memory expansion and USB connectivity with charging support.Running Windows Mobile 5.0, the 8500 comes equipped with Pocket Windows Media Player 10 and dedicated music control buttons, harbouring 64 MB of RAM and 64 MB of ROM. A suite of viewers for common document formats is also included, as is Microsoft’s Messaging and Security Feature Pack (MSFP) for push e-mail functionality towards Microsoft Exchange 2003 servers with SP2. ” via infosyncworld.com

“Regarding general appearance, it will be a matter of taste as to how much the new LOOX will catch you. There are certainly more attractive devices on the market, but for most users it is more important what the device can do, rather than what it looks like. Not everybody has to like round shapes and curves, do they? 🙂 If we proceed with a classic check-up of the device’s body, we have to logically start with the front side with main display. Midway above the main display is the on/off button and on both sides, left and right, there is one elongated LED diode for displaying various states and notices. Under the display there is again a fully symmetrical cross controller (however it is not a joystick, but a four-way D-pad) with a separate centre section functioning as an independent confirmation button. On both sides we find a couple of programmable buttons preset for opening the Calendar and Contacts functions on the left side and E2C (application for control of wireless modules) and return button for the Dnes screen on the right side. The function of these buttons can easily be changed (for example to the function for classic WM5 soft-keys), moreover each button recognises long and short pressing, so it is possible to assign up to 8 different functions to these four buttons. Also the option to lock the keys while the device is off is pleasing, thereby avoiding any annoying surprises when the device turns itself on by mistake in your pocket. Furthermore, the D-Pad buttons are blue-lighted, therefore it is possible to work with the device in absolute darkness.” Read the review of this great pda here:

“The US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has approved a new mobile phone by Pantech – the PN218 designed for Alltel operator. Earlier the model has been released under the index CDM-180 for other operators UTStarcom and Audiovox, its design was slightly different.The main specs:
VGA Camera
Voice dialing
Support of GPSOne service
Internal LCD: 1.8” TFT, 262K colors
External LCD: 1” 65K colors
32-tones polyphony
WAP, SMS, MMS
Other functions: calendar, alarm clock, text and voice notes, calculator, stopwatch, world time
Weight: 99 g
Dimensions: 76x54x24 mm”

“Specifications for the MDA Vario II have been posted on the German T-Mobile website, click here to view the PDF which quotes a release date of Q3 2006, WiFi B/G, a 2MP camera, QWERTY keyboard, Windows Mobile 5, High-Speed Downlink Packet Access (3GPP WCDMA) and a track-wheel.” via msmobilenews.com