Digital Tech News - Digital Technology & Consumer Electronics

Verizon BlackBerry Tour and Sprint BlackBerry Tour Phone Released

The highly anticipated global 3G BlackBerry Tour smart phone by RIM is now available from both Verizon Wireless and Sprint Wireless. Both carriers list the BlackBerry Tour phone for $199.99 after a mail-in rebate with a new two-year customer agreement 

Motorola Karma QA1 Messaging and Social Networking Phone from AT&T

It's nice to see Motorola offering a new device with a purpose. The Motorola Karma QA1 phone is aimed at teenagers and others who need a device for messaging, social networking, and of course...Tweeting. The device has one-touch buttons for accessing Facebook and MySpace, and as you'll see in the video presentation below, the Karma QA1 has a compact design with a slide-out QWERTY keyboard and a high-resolution 2.5-inch QVGA screen. A 2.0 megapixel camera with flash and video recording, aGPS, stereo Bluetooth, a 3.5 mm headphone jack, and microSD slot are also incorporated on the Karma Qa1. The phone is pre-loaded with JuiceCaster, a service that lets you connect with friends and share photos and video on AT&T's 3G network.

AT&T will be selling the Motorola Karma QA1 phone in AT&T stores and online beginning June 28 for $79.99 after mail-in rebate with a two-year service agreement for wireless voice plans of $39.99 a month or higher and a $20 a month data or messaging plan.

New T-Mobile myTouch 3G Android Phone Announced

T-Mobile USA is following-up its G1 Android phone with the new T-Mobile myTouch 3G Android smart phone which will be available to pre-order for current T-Mobile customers starting July 8 for $199.99 with a two-year agreement.  The myTouch 3G Android Phone will ship in late July, in time for and early August release.

As this is T-Mobile's second Google Android powered device, myTouch 3G also features one-touch access to a host of Google services including Google Search by voice, Google Maps with Street View, YouTube and Picasa, as well as access to thousands of apps from the Android Market. As the name indicates, myTouch 3G is all about "touch," and it lacks the slide-out QWERTY keyboard found on the larger G1. The new phone has a 3.2-inch HVGA touch-screen display with virtual keyboard. myTouch 3G also features a 3.2-megapixel camera, video recording and sharing, a music player, a pre-installed 4GB microSD memory card, and  Wi-Fi.

myTouch 3G runs on T-Mobile’s fast 3G network, and it will be available in black, white, and merlot colors.

Nokia 5530 XpressMusic, Nokia E72, and Nokia 3710 fold Phones Introduced

Nokia recently announced three devices based on the S60 and Series 40 developer platforms. The Nokia 5530 XpressMusic phone, Nokia E72 messaging device, and Nokia 3710 fold phone are all scheduled to ship in the latter part of 2009.

Motorola Endeavor HX1 Bluetooth Headset features True Bone Conduction Technology

Here's the new Motorola Endeavor HX1 Bluetooth headset, the first headset to combine Motorola's CrystalTalk noise cancellation technology with a stealth mode that lets you hear and be heard in any environment. Motorola Endeavor features "true bone conduction technology" which uses an ear sensor to seal off outside noise, making calls even more clear.

The Motorola Endeavor HX1 Bluetooth headset is scheduled to be released in multiple regions beginning with Asia in July 2009. Specific availability and pricing details will be available at www.motorola.com/endeavor-hx1

Samsung Omnia II, OmniaPRO series, and OmniaLITE Smartphones

Samsung unveiled its latest Omnia smartphones, the Omnia II I8000 with Windows Mobile 6.1 Professional, 3.7-inch AMOLED display, TouchWiz 2.0 UI, video recording, and 3D effects. The OmniaPRO B7610 smartphone with full QWERTY keyboard, Push email, and Opera 9.5 browser. The OmniaPRO B7320 featuring an ergonomic QWERTY keypad and corporate push email support, and the OmniaLITE B7300 with TouchWiz 2.0, 3MP camera, and 3D multimedia player. Pricing or release dates were not announced, but the new Samsung Omnia smartphone devices will be updateable to Windows Mobile 6.5 when the OS update is released.

Sony Ericsson C901 GreenHeart and Naite GreenHeart Eco-friendly Cellphones

Sony Ericsson has introduced its new GreenHeart line of eco-friendly cellphones, the C901 GreenHeart and Naite GreenHeart. Sticking with the green theme, the flagship C901 GreenHeart includes an electronic in-phone manual thereby cutting down on paper and packaging. The phone's casing is said to be made from a minimum of 50% recycled plastics and includes an optimized display light sensor that uses less energy. The C901 GreenHeart ships with the MH300 GreenHeart headset, which is made of recycled plastics.

As well as featuring many of the innovations showcased in the C901 GreenHeart™, Naite will come to market with a low-power charger, the EP300 GreenHeart™ charger, one of the first of its kind to be introduced to the market. Thanks to these innovations, the overall CO_² footprint over the full life of the C901 GreenHeart™ and Naite is reduced by 15%.

The first GreenHeart™ pioneer phone, the C901 GreenHeart™ will also include a WalkMate application, letting users really walk the talk about being more eco-friendly by comparing the steps they take with the equivalent journey travelled by car. And Naite includes an Ecomate application helping users make greener choices in their everyday life as well as a Carbon Footprint Calculator to show you how much CO_² you are saving when you walk instead of taking the car.

www.sonyericsson.com/greenheart

LG enV3, LG enV TOUCH, and LG Glance Mobile Phones Released by Verizon Wireless

Joining the LG enV3 phone which was released on May 29, Verizon Wireless today has also released the LG enV TOUCH and LG Glance phones at Verizon Wireless Communications Stores and online. The LG enV3 is priced at $129.99 after a $50 mail-in rebate with a new two-year customer agreement. The LG enV TOUCH can be yours for $149.99 after a $70 mail-in rebate with a new two-year customer agreement, while the LG Glance phone is available for $49.99 after a $50 mail-in rebate with a new two-year customer agreement.

Nokia N97 "Mobile Computer" Smart Phone Begins Selling

It's June, and that means the highly anticipated Nokia N97 smart phone is ready to roll out. The mobile computer phone featuring a tilting 3.5" touch display, QWERTY keyboard, 5 megapixel camera, Wi-fi, GPS, 32GB of internal storage, and instant access to Nokia's Ovi services will begin selling this month in more than 75 countries. In the U.S., expect the unlocked version of the Nokia n97 smartphone to be priced at about $699.

Satio Phone by Sony Ericsson Boasts 12.1 Megapixel Camera

When Sony Ericsson first introduced this slick phone it went under the codename "Idou,"  but the company has now officially given the device the name "Satio."  Nevertheless, this mobile multimedia powerhouse has the same impressive features including a 12.1 megapixel camera with touch focus, Xenon flash, and face and smile detection, and a 3.5 inch screen in 16:9 widescreen format for watching videos on-the-go, which also offers an intuitive full touch media menu. The Sony Ericsson Satio phone allows you ro download music, movies and games from PlayNow arena. 

Satio supports GSM/GPRS/EDGE 850/900/1800/1900 and UMTS/HSDPA 850/900/2100, and will be available in selected markets from early Q4 in the Black, Silver and Bordeaux colors.

Sony Ericsson Launches Yari Phone featuring Gesture Gaming

Sony Ericsson's new Yari phone focuses on mobile gaming with gesture gaming technology that lets you twist, tilt, and turn the device as you play. In between phone calls, you can play a variety of gesture games, as well as pre loaded motion and standard games which can also be downlaoded from SE's PlayNow arena. You can also snap photos with Yari's 5.0 mega pixel camera and listen to music with its dedicated player. Sony Ericsson explains it this way:

“Yari is the industry’s first mobile phone with gesture gaming outside of the Japanese market,” said Catherine Cherry, Market Business Manager at Sony Ericsson.  “It’s time to move like you’ve never moved on a mobile phone before! With Gesture gaming you move your body to play instead of pressing buttons on the phone, giving you a fun experience that even helps you keep fit."

Sony Ericsson Aino Phone with Media Go Multimedia App

 

Sony Ericsson has introduced the lovely Aino phone, a slider-style device that combines a keypad with an intuitive touch UI in media mode, and a media browser that provides one touch direct access to content. The Aino phone's Media Go and Media Home apps help you transfer, play and organize your music, photos, videos and podcasts from your PC via Wi-Fi.  And how about this? You can also control your PlayStation 3 and access its media content on the Aino phone anywhere, anytime using something Sony Ericsson calls "Remote Play with Playstation3"  which was initially developed for PSP.  When Aino is released in Italy, France, Spain, Germany and in the UK (early Q4) Aino owners will be able to use a PlayTV service to watch, pause and record live Mobile TV via the Aino.

The Sony Ericsson Aino phone also features a 3" screen, an 8.1 megapixel camera, and it is packaged with Sony Ericsson's Wireless Stereo Headphone MH100 and matching Charging Stand EC100.

Sprint Palm Pre Phone Release Set for June 6

A June 6th release date has officially been set for Sprint Wireless' highly anticipated Palm Pre phone featuring the new Palm webOS mobile platform. Customers can buy the Pre slider-style, multitouch QWERTY smartphone at Sprint stores, Best Buy, Radio Shack, select Wal-Mart stores and online at Sprint.com for $199.99 after a $100 mail-in rebate with a new 2 year service agreement on an Everything Data plan or Business Essentials with Messaging and Data plan. A Pre Touchstone Charging Kit, which includes the unique Touchstone charging dock and Touchstone back cover for Pre, will also be available June 6 for $69.99. The Touchstone charging dock and Touchstone back cover will also be sold separately for $49.99 and $19.99, respectively.

Check the following links for more Palm Pre features, specs, and details.

Palm Pre Phone and Palm webOS Mobile Platform Announced for Sprint

Palm Pre Smartphone Promo Videos and New Apps Demo Video

Sprint Palm Pre Smartphone Demo Video

Samsung Alias 2 Phone with E Ink Transforming Keypad Released by Verizon Wireless

Verizon Wireless has made the Samsung Alias 2 phone available to customers looking for a unique messaging phone. The dual-hinge flip phone has an E Ink transforming keypad that changes based on what the user needs. For example, if you open the Alias 2 vertically as a flip phone, it has a traditional numeric keypad and can change to an alpha-only keypad. Switching to landscape, the phone features a QWERTY keypad that can change to numeric with symbol. Watch the short video below for a demo.  

The Samsung Alias 2 phone is available now for $79.99 after a $50 mail-in rebate and a new two-year customer agreement.

Motorola MOTO W7 Active Edition - Motion-enabled 3G Phone

Motorola wants you to "Shake things up" with its new motion-enabled MOTO W7 Active Edition 3G phone. The device has an accelerometer that senses your body’s motions, orientation and hand gestures, allowing you to launch apps, play mobile games and listen to music with its MP3 player or FM Radio by shaking it. MOTO W7 also has a built-in step pedometer that counts and records your daily walks and runs, with a Personal Trainer app that helps you set and achieve workout goals.

MOTO W7 also features two cameras, a 2.0 megapixel for still photos and a second VGA camera for video calls. There's 30MB of user available memory and up to 8GB via a MicroSD slot. The slider style phone can be paired with Motorola's MOTOROKR S9-HD Stereo Bluetooth headphones, or your preferred headset.

MOTO W7 Active Edition will be available in Q2 2009 in Asia and Latin America, in Licorice and Alpine White colors.