Author: pdasnews

Universal Display has created the proto of a flexible color OLED display. The proto is based on flexible metallic foil. It supports ordinary images and video as well. The display has a 4” diagonal and 0.1 mm of width. It weighs about 6 g. To compare, ordinary glass LCD with similar specs are 1-1.5 mm thick and weigh 20-30 g.According to Universal Display the use of foil instead of glass decreases thickness and weight and also increases strength greatly and improves temperature specs of displays. Such features are very important for phones, handhelds and notebooks. Besides it becomes possible to make gadgets, which can be carried, for example, on arms like PDA-bracelets. The company intends to show the proto at USDC (United States Display Consortium) conference in Phoenix. via mobile-review.com

“Looks-wise, the A636 has a face that only a mother could love. For those of you who’ve been long time Pocket PC users, the A636 reminds me of the old Casio E-200. Despite its unabashedly gray rectangular looks and reasonable bulk, the unit is actually extremely well designed and thought out. It works equally well in portrait and landscape modes (nice for mapping), has a slim GPS receiver panel that folds flush into the back of the PDA and sports large, easy-to-use when driving controls. It might not have the stylish good looks of the non-GPS ASUS A730w, but its ergonomics are excellent. The large 3/4″ speaker grille faces front and ensures that you’ll hear voice guidance in the car, and the A636 has both a directional pad and an application launcher pad that’s arranged much like a d-pad for easy use” Read this review here:

Samsung proudly presents their new Micro Card, and they claim its the fastest on the market. They back that statement up by giving a comparison between this new card and a MicroSD, that offers a writing speed of 2.04MB/s, while this MMCMicro by Samsung offers 7.12MB/s.Samsung Electronics Develops Fastest GigaByte Micro Memory CardSeoul, Korea – February 9, 2005: Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd., the world leader in advanced memory technology, today announced that it has developed the fastest micro memory card with a gigabyte of density, for use in small cell phones, digital cameras and MP3 players. High demand for the high-speed 1 GB MMCmicroTM card is expected from cell phone manufacturers because of its compelling combination of features: speed, capacity, size and reduced power consumption.The new 1 GB MMCmicro, at 7.12 MBs per second, writes 3.5 times as fast as other micro cards being sold today. It can store 20 five-megapixel pictures in 11 seconds, while other cards take up to 30 seconds, or even longer, to do the same.”The card is large enough to store 15 hours of mobile video and fast enough to download 90 minutes of it in under two minutes,” said Don Barnetson, Associate Director, Flash Marketing, Samsung Semiconductor., USA. Samsung’s new MMCmicro comes with a dual voltage of 1.8 volts and 3.3V. The lower voltage version reduces power consumption 82 percent over other micro-sized cards. An adapter allows the card to be plugged into any multimedia card slot.The card – the size of a fingernail (12mmx14mmx1.1mm) – houses four NAND flash memories and a controller.The Dataquest semiconductor research firm said that the global MMCmicro market will expand by 81 percent cumulative annual growth rate (CAGR) between 2005 and 2010, from 4 million units last year to 77 million units in 2010, while the overall MultiMediaCard market grows by about 9 percent CAGR from 65 to 100 million units.The 1 GB MMCmicro will be commercially available in the third quarter of 2006.

Korean mobile phones continue to feature DMB TV capabilities while portable media players haven’t really changed much, the inevitable has happend, Samsung has integrated DMB in their latest SMU-D110 PMP.The small handheld can receive DMB signals, but it can also work as a standard PMP. A 2.4 inch 320 x 240 display makes the TV look great, I’m sure. When not watching DMB, the SMU-D110 is just another PMP. Memory is flexible thanks to the TransFlash slot as well as Bluetooth to cut out the need for ugly wires. Of course, this device will only be available in Korea. It will be interesting, though, to see how it goes. On one hand, it seems like it could be difficult to break into the market when so many phones are offering DMB and Samsung and others are adding DMB to cameras and everything else with a screen. People may not want to add another device to the gear bag when they don’t need to. On the other hand, the screen is bigger than what you would get on a phone, so it might just tickle your viewing fancy a bit better. via mobilemag.com

Motorola’s latest slim phone model ZMotorola, the world’s second-largest cell phone vendor, Wednesday took the wraps off a slim slider phone, which it claims is the ultimate evolution of its hot seller RAZR.The 14.8-millimeter-thick model, codenamed Z to show its concept _ the final version of the ultra-thin phone series, was designed and developed in Korea. As a result, the sleek model was first disclosed in Korea unlike its high-profile predecessor RAZR, a clamshell-type phone that hit the local shops last year only after a big success in the global arena.“This is the thinnest among many slider phones available here but it by no means lacks applications compared to other handsets,’’ Gill Hyun-chang, chief executive at Motorola Korea, said.Indeed, the model is outfitted with a 2.2-inch screen, a mega-pixel digital camera and an MP3 player on top of highly customized user interfaces provided on a metal keypad. Motorola plans to market the Z through SK Telecom, the country’s primary mobile carrier, this month with a price tag between 500,000 won and 600,000 won. Despite the upbeat expectation of Motorola, some raise suspicions whether or not it will repeat the notable success of RAZR, for which demands once outstripped its supplies. The first and foremost hitch they present is that the Z cannot savor the status of the pioneer because slim sliders are currently flooding the market. By contrast, the 14.5-millimeter-thick RAZR was the first wafer-thin handset in the market when it debuted last June and its popularity prompted other domestic producers to roll out copycat products. via times.hankooki.com

From the makers of ‘PaintBall’, a new, fun & extra addicting puzzle game that will also sucks you in and won’t let you go until you’ve wasted all of your time! ‘Frutakia’ uses the ‘casino slots idea’ and turns it into an original & fun game.• Game Objective:You must make groups of 3 or more same fruits/items at any direction! There are 5 different fruits and 2 different items. ‘Blanks’ can also appear.The ‘bell’ scores more points than the fruits and the ‘super item’ scores the most! —08/Feb/2006 UPDATE (1.4) —* Windows Mobile 2005 tuned.* Treo 700w tuned.* Support for 480×480 resolutions.* Bug fixed in CAB installer. Check it here:

RWC is going to release the B1 under their iTAN brand. this USB phone is Skype compatible and will have DSP (Echo Cancellation) and a very nice design. Would have been better to make it wireless/cordless too, but maybe we’re just too demanding now… via akihabaranews.com

Toshiba and Microsoft introduced the Gigabeat S at the CES 2006. CNET just published a review of the Toshiba Gigabeat S that should hit stores in March in the US. The CNET reviewer is a big fan of the Portable Media Center (PMC) and raves how intuitive it is. He is though not pleased with the button interface of the Gigabeat S. The 2.4 inch screen also lacks the vividness of the one featured in the Creative Zen Vision:M for instance. Read the full review for more details.Microsoft will release the Windows Media Player 11 in March and also the MTV and Microsoft music service site Urge is supposed to launch in 2006. If the portable media players by Microsoft partners such as Toshiba are not gaining on Apple’s market share, Microsoft might really have to launch their rumored portable gaming and media gadget to fight Apple directly. via i4u.com

Two smart phones coming from Sony Ericsson Mobile Communications in the second quarter will support an array of push e-mail systems including Microsoft’s Exchange ActiveSync and Research in Motion’s BlackBerry Connect.Users will be able to synchronize both the P990 and the M600 handsets with Exchange Server 2003 to view e-mail, contacts, and calendar entries, Microsoft said today. Enterprises using Service Pack 2 of the server software will be able to deliver the latest e-mail to employees via Microsoft’s Direct Push technology.Not Only MicrosoftBut Sony Ericsson isn’t locking users in to Microsoft’s platform on the phones, which will use Symbian’s Symbian OS 9.1 and the UIQ 3.0 software platform and operate on UMTS (Universal Mobile Telecommunications System) networks.Both devices will also support BlackBerry Connect, a software-based version of RIM’s popular push e-mail technology, RIM announced today. Other e-mail options will include iAnywhere Solutions’ OneBridge and software from AlteXia, Intellisync, Seven, and Visto. Standard IMAP (Internet Message Access Protocol) e-mail will also be supported, and Ericsson Mobile Office will be provided free with the phones on a “try-and-buy” basis, according to Sony Ericsson. Competitive Push E-MailPush e-mail for mobile handsets, pioneered by RIM, has become a hotly competitive field. Microsoft is making inroads both with licensed ActiveSync software and with Windows Mobile OS devices, which have Exchange ActiveSync compatibility built in. Motorola, Palm, Nokia, Symbian, and software vendor DataViz are already licensees of ActiveSync, according to Microsoft. Meanwhile, RIM has come under a cloud as the Waterloo, Ontario, company faces a possible injunction against its service in the United States due to a court battle over patents.Sony Ericsson’s P990 was announced last year in advance of its availability so developers could start working on applications for it. The handset includes Wi-Fi and a 2-megapixel camera. The M600, announced Monday, will have a touch screen with handwriting recognition. It will also have a dual-fuction keypad for dialing numbers and typing e-mail that can be configured for QWERTY, Russian, and other layouts, according to Sony Ericsson.Both handsets also will include trial versions of McAfee antivirus and firewall software and Pointsec Mobile Technologies encryption software, plus a free Certicom VPN (virtual private network) client.The P990 will be offered in two forms: the P990i for UMTS and GPRS (General Packet Radio Service) networks in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia-Pacific region, and the P990c for UMTS and GPRS networks in mainland China when UMTS coverage is available. The M600i will be offered for UMTS and GPRS in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia-Pacific, and the Americas, and the M600c will be available in mainland China when networks become available.

Sony Europe has announced a new model of the compact HDD series Microvault Pro. The device is capacious of 8 GB. It is based on a 1” HDD placed in metallic shell and equipped with a USB-connector.The drive has the size of a business card. The sales of the 8 GB Microvault Pro should start during February. The recommended price makes up €199, i.e. about $240. The HDD comes with preinstalled software Auto Sync. via mobile-review.com